Finland will close its border crossings with Russia until January 14 due to an influx of migrants. Helsinki accuses Moscow of exploiting migrants in retaliation for its membership of NATO.
Finland has decided to close its border with Russia again after a brief reopening.
Two out of eight border crossings had reopened on Thursday, but after seeing an increased influx of undocumented migrants, the border was closed again. Checkpoints are not expected to reopen until January 14.
Finland has again accused Russian authorities of intentionally “channeling” illegal migrants to the Finnish border. According to Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, “It’s not about the number of people, it’s about the phenomenon. This is clearly an attempt to influence Finland”.