OR Finland Complete the first 35 kilometers of 4.5 meters high fence built on the closed east of its border with Russiato prevent immigrants from passing through deserted landscapes, the Finnish border guard announced today (21.05.2025).
Finland began to build the fence in 2024, which will cover 200 kilometers from the total length of the border reaching 1,344 kilometers, in response to immigration from Russia.
The occasion was the migratory flows from Russia, which increased in 2023, with Helsinki believing that it was deliberately orchestrated by Moscow.
«The main purpose of the wall is to control large masses of people who will try to enter Finland from Russia“, Reuters told the Deputy Commander of the Department of Southeast Finnish Border Guard, Annie Virta.
In Nujama, located near one of the closed border crossing, the scene was calm today, with only the sound of birds heard on both sides of the new wall.
Major Samuel Siljanen, head of business in the southeastern part of the Finnish Border Guard Reuters / Leonhard Foeger
However, Finland has been criticized, not only by Russia, for the closure of border and the construction of the wall.
After decades of peaceful relations with Russia, Finland joined the NATO military alliance two years ago in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which led Moscow to threaten Helsinki with retaliation.
In the same year – in 2023 – about 1,300 immigrants from third countries such as Syria and Somalia arrived through Russia on the Finnish border to seek asylum until Finland closed indefinitely and the eight passage points to Russia to put an end to the phenomenon.
Russia has denied that it orchestrates migratory flows. At that time, the Russian government said it was deeply sorry for Finland’s decision to close its border crossing, saying it reflects the adoption of an anti -Russian attitude by Helsinki.
Checkpoint on the new Finland fence on the border with Russia / Reuters / Leonhard Foeger
Almost no immigrant arrived after the closure of Finland’s borders at the end of 2023, but the border guard defended the decision to build the wall.
“The wall at the border is absolutely essential for maintaining border security,” said business leader Samuel Siljenen.
“From the border guard’s point of view, it improves our ability to oversee the border, to act if there is a border disorder or a border incident,” he said, adding that the fence is necessary to combat orchestrated migration.
REUTERS / Leonhard Foeger
The European Court of Human Rights has asked Finland to justify the indefinite border closure. The Commissioner of the Council of Europe for Human Rights, Michael O’Flachert, had warned last year that Finnish’s temporary restrictions on asylum applications “would violate international liabilities, including the prohibition of reproduction and collective expulsion”.
The wall consists of a 3.5 -meter -high metal handrails covered by a one -meter -high barbed wire roll and equipped with cameras, sensors, loudspeakers and lights. It will be completed by the end of 2026, the border guard said.