On November 27, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo announced that Helsinki considers the influx of asylum seekers from Russia into the country a matter of national security.
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| Finland has closed most of its border crossings with Russia. (Source: AFP) |
Earlier, on November 24, the Finnish border guard said that regular meetings between Finnish and Russian border commissioners had failed to bring a solution to the irregular flow of migrants from the Middle East and North Africa to the Finnish border via Russian territory, and as a result Helsinki had closed border checkpoints.
Finland has begun closing border checkpoints with Russia, citing worsening migration. On November 22, the Finnish government announced that all border crossings with Russia would be closed until December 23, leaving only one, Raja-Jooseppi, in the far north.
The Russian Foreign Ministry sent a note of protest to Finnish Ambassador Antti Helantera in Russia over Helsinki's decision, criticizing that the decision was made without any consultation with Moscow.
RIA Novosti news agency on November 25 quoted Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo as saying that his country has no intention of holding political discussions with Russia regarding the situation on the border between the two countries.
For her part, Finnish Interior Minister Mari Rantanen said the government would close the remaining checkpoint with Russia if its neighbor continued its mixed campaign to "push asylum seekers across the border".
According to information from the Russian border service, Finnish and Russian border authorities hold regular meetings, but the negotiations do not lead to a solution to stabilize the situation at the border.
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