Current:Home > MarketsFinland will keep its border with Russia closed until further notice over migration concerns -FundPrime
Finland will keep its border with Russia closed until further notice over migration concerns
View
Date:2025-04-15 08:03:37
HELSINKI (AP) — Finland will extend the closure of its border crossing points with Russia beyond the current April 14 deadline “until further notice” due to a high risk of organized migration orchestrated by Moscow, the Finnish government said on Thursday.
The Finnish Interior Ministry said in a statement that the Nordic country’s national security and public order would come under serious threat if the estimated hundreds of third-country nationals were to continue to attempt to enter from Russia without proper documentation.
“Based on information provided by public authorities, the risk that instrumentalized migration (by Russia) will resume and expand as seen previously remains likely,” the ministry said.
Finland closed the 1,340-kilometer (830-mile) land border late last year after more than 1,300 migrants without proper documentation or visas — an unusually high number — entered the country in the three months since September, not long after Finland joined the NATO alliance.
Most of the migrants hail from the Middle East and Africa, from countries including Afghanistan, Egypt, Iraq, Somalia, Syria and Yemen. The vast majority of them have sought asylum in Finland, a European Union member state with a population of 5.6 million.
The Finnish Border Guard has earlier said that many migrants hold valid visas for working or studying - or have a residence permit - in Russia, which is considered a safe country.
Accusing Russia of deliberately ushering migrants to the normally heavily guarded Russia-Finland border zone that serves also as the EU’s external border in the north, the Cabinet of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo has extended the closure of checkpoints several times.
The Kremlin has denied Helsinki’s claims and instead accused the Finnish government of an unwillingness to hold a dialogue on the border issue.
All eight Finland-Russia land border crossing points for people have been closed since Dec. 15. The southeastern rail checkpoint for cargo trains in Vainikkala remains open but the government said on Thursday it would close three maritime checkpoints starting April 15.
Migrants can continue to seek asylum in Finland, part of EU´s passport-free Schengen zone, at Finnish airports and harbors, the government said.
“Finnish authorities see this as a long-term situation,” Interior Minister Mari Rantanen said. “We have not seen anything this spring that would lead us to conclude that the (migration) situation has changed meaningfully.”
In addition, warmer spring weather is estimated by the Finnish government to increase the number of migrants reaching the border, putting pressure on Helsinki to find a sustainable solution.
“There are hundreds and possibly thousands of people close to Finland’s border on the Russian side that could be instrumentalized against Finland,” Rantanen said. “Instrumentalized migration is one way that Russia can put pressure on and affect the security and social stability of Finland and the EU.”
The Finnish Cabinet is currently drafting a legal act on measures to combat instrumentalized migration, including allowing the so-called pushback method in expelling migrants and asylum seekers, on the border with Russia.
Pushbacks, the forcible return of people across an international border without an assessment of their rights to apply for asylum or other protection, violate both international and EU law. However, EU members Poland, Latvia and Lithuania have previously resorted to the controversial measure when dealing with migrants attempting to enter from Belarus.
The interior ministry said the legislative proposal on migration is to be submitted to Eduskunta, or the Parliament, as soon as possible. It must have the support of a wide majority of lawmakers to pass and the proposal has already been widely debated by experts, politicians and citizens.
Earlier, the government said it had received international support for the law from the EU and other organizations.
Finland acts as the EU’s external border in the north and makes up a significant part of NATO’s northeastern flank.
___
Follow AP’s global migration coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/migration
veryGood! (518)
Related
- Average rate on 30
- Prince William Returns to Royal Duties Amid King Charles III’s Cancer Treatment
- Bright lights and big parties: Super Bowl 2024 arrives in Las Vegas
- King Charles has cancer and we don’t know what kind. How we talk about it matters.
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- Parents of man found dead outside Kansas City home speak out on what they believe happened
- Why AP called the Nevada GOP primary for ‘None of these candidates’
- Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell Shares Hope of Getting Married Prior to Her Death
- The Daily Money: Spending more on holiday travel?
- A foster parent reflects on loving — and letting go of — the children in his care
Ranking
- 'We're reborn!' Gazans express joy at returning home to north
- Mother of 16-year-old who died at Mississippi poultry plant files lawsuit
- Which states could have abortion on the ballot in 2024?
- A reporter is suing a Kansas town and various officials over a police raid on her newspaper
- Working Well: When holidays present rude customers, taking breaks and the high road preserve peace
- Nonprofit Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana seeks approval for sale to Elevance
- NFL avoids major Super Bowl embarrassment – for now – with 49ers' practice field problem
- Does the hurricane scale need a Category 6? New climate study found 5 recent storms have met the threshold.
Recommendation
Sonya Massey's father decries possible release of former deputy charged with her death
How the art world excludes you and what you can do about it
Cheese recall: Dozens of dairy products sold nationwide for risk of listeria contamination
In His First Year as Governor, Josh Shapiro Forged Alliances With the Natural Gas Industry, Angering Environmentalists Who Once Supported Him
Meet first time Grammy nominee Charley Crockett
Save 36% on Peter Thomas Roth Retinol That Reduces Fine Lines & Wrinkles While You Sleep
Judge wants answers after report that key witness in Trump fraud trial may plead guilty to perjury
Tom Holland to star in West End production of 'Romeo & Juliet' in London