Finland hopes to ease restrictions on its eastern border with Russia after the traffic of migrants stopped following Helsinki’s complete closure of the frontier last week, Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen said.
“We are closely following the situation, how it evolves,” Valtonen told POLITICO in an interview on Friday. “And now that it has been peaceful, we hope that we can, if not go directly to normal … at least open a few border crossings if possible.”
Finland last week closed its entire eastern border with Russia for two weeks amid accusations that Moscow was encouraging asylum seekers to travel across its frontier into the EU and NATO country.
Valtonen said Finland has evidence that Russian authorities have been actively helping people reach the border, by oganizing group transports and providing people with equipment, for example, and recruiting people. “This is an active measure of instrumentalizing third-country citizens, which Finland cannot accept,” she said. […]
The Finnish Security Intelligence Service (Supo) confirmed to Yle and POLITICO that it was aware of Russia’s plans to organize or encourage demonstrations in Finland, but did not give further comments. Finland joined the Western defense alliance in the spring; Sweden said last week that Turkey has promised it will ratify Stockholm’s bid “within weeks.” Läs artikel