Finland responds to plans to open border with Russia

"We are not going to open the border. We know that Russia wants to continue sending migrant flows to Finland immediately," Häkkänen said.

He stated that Russia tends to gloss over its actions, even though it was the one that caused the breakdown in relations with its neighbors.

"They attacked Chechnya, Georgia, Crimea, and then full-scale attacks on Ukraine. Russia killed and wounded hundreds of thousands of people and seized a significant part of its neighbor's territory," the defense minister noted.

Häkkänen added that if Russia is truly committed to engaging with its neighbors, it must first change its behavior. In the current situation, Russia cannot count on continuing tourism and trade.

"If Europe is weak, it means that negotiations and agreements take place without our participation," he emphasized.

Russia-Finland border

In 2023, Finland faced a sharp increase in the number of migrants from Somalia and Iraq at its border with Russia. In response to official inquiries about the reasons for this influx of migrants, the Kremlin either did not respond or denied any involvement.

Later, a journalistic investigation revealed that Russian security forces were behind the influx of migrants.

Finland keeps its border with Russia closed for now, and this decision remains in effect. Additionally, Finland deports migrants who manage to illegally enter the country back to Russia.

At the same time, Finland continues to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia. The manipulations on the shared border with Russia were partly organized by Russian security forces for this very reason.

It is known that until the end of the Russian-Ukrainian war, Helsinki froze bilateral relations with Russia. The country's president, Alexander Stubb, also expressed the opinion that Finns should prepare for war coming to their borders.