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Russian tactics designed to disrupt European nations forced neighboring Finland to fundamentally rethink its border security, culminating in the recent completion of a new border fence along its eastern frontier.
Finland constructed roughly 124 miles of fencing along its border with Russia — a secondary security measure intended to stem the flow of unauthorized Russian migrants, Petri Hakkarainen, political director for the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, told Digital.
“We have in the past witnessed Russia’s attempts… to instrumentalize migrants at the Finnish border,” Hakkarainen said. “Basically pushing migrants towards our borders, forcing us then to take them on.”
A sudden influx forces the Finnish government to process large volumes of asylum claims, which could destabilize society if carried out on a massive scale, he explained.
In response, Finland closed its entire land border with Russia in 2023. Moscow swiftly filed a formal complaint, condemning the closure as “Russophobic.”
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Security cameras overlook the Niirala Border Crossing Station along Finland’s eastern border with Russia in November 2023 after Finland closed the checkpoint amid heightened border security concerns. (Brooke Curto/ Digital)
The Kremlin expressed “deep regret” over the move, claiming it replaced decades of “pragmatic, mutually respectful relations” with an anti-Russian political stance.
Finland shares an 833-mile border with Russia — the longest of any European Union or NATO member state. The completed border fence supplements the border closures.
As Russia remains locked in a war of attrition in Ukraine, Western officials have accused Moscow of launching widespread destabilization campaigns, ranging from disinformation to state-sponsored economic coercion intended to erode public trust across Europe.
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Signs near the Niirala Border Crossing Station on Finland’s eastern border with Russia in November 2023 following the closure of the checkpoint. (Brooke Curto/ Digital)
“We think it’s important to listen to those of us who live next door to Russia,” Hakkarainen said. “Listen to our analysis of the situation: we consider Russia to be a long-term threat to transatlantic security — not only to Ukraine, not only to Europeans, but to transatlantic security as a whole.”
Finland launched the border fence initiative after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a landmark conflict that prompted the historically neutral Nordic nation to join NATO in April 2023.
Moscow has long viewed NATO’s eastward expansion as a direct security threat, using it to justify reinforcing its western defenses.
When Finland officially joined the alliance, Helsinki saw an immediate reaction: over 1,300 migrants without visa arrived at its eastern border.
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The Niirala border crossing point is seen along Finland’s eastern border with Russia in November 2023 after the Finnish government announced the closure of several border crossings amid concerns over migrant crossings. (Brooke Curto/ Digital)
Finland accused Moscow of weaponizing migration as an act of “hybrid warfare,” a charge the Kremlin denied.
Closing the border checkpoints has proven “very effective,” Hakkarainen noted. Beyond physical barriers, Finnish lawmakers passed the Border Security Act.
The temporary law allows border authorities to restrict asylum applications and turn back migrants if a foreign actor attempts to destabilize the country by funneling people across the border.
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Signs mark the Niirala Border Crossing Point on Finland’s eastern border with Russia in November 2023 following the Finnish government’s closure of the crossing. (Brooke Curto/ Digital)
While the law sparked some initial debate over potential human rights and international law violations, Hakkarainen emphasized that national defense took priority.
“We take these concerns very seriously,” he said. “But national security and our own sovereignty… weighed more heavily in this conversation, though there is broad majority support for the act.”
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“We take our security and preparedness very seriously,” Hakkarainen added.
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“I would say not despite that, but because of that, we are able to lead very normal lives here — regardless of the neighbor we have.”
