Goods traffic between the two countries remains permitted. Finland claims to be the target of a hybrid attack by Russia. Prime Minister Petteri Orpo says the situation at the border with Russia will be normalized as soon as possible. The countries share a border of more than 1,300 kilometers.
The southernmost crossings were the first to close this month. But as migrants moved north, more closures followed late last week. Only the northernmost border post, in Lapland, remained open. The government takes into account that people will continue to come.
In November, approximately nine hundred asylum seekers entered Finland via Russia. That previously averaged less than one per day, according to the Finnish Border Guard. The migrants come from Afghanistan, Yemen, Kenya, Morocco, Pakistan, Somalia and Syria, among others.