Finland to permanently close two crossing points on Russian border
Photo: Finland plans to permanently close two crossing points with Russia (pixabay.com)
The Finnish Border Guard plans to permanently close the Parikkala and Lieksa Inari temporary crossing points. For several years, no movement has been observed through them, reports Yle.
It is reported that there are two temporary border crossing points in Lieksan district - Parikkala and Inari. They were mainly used to transport wood.
Both border crossings were temporarily closed for several years. Traffic was stopped in Parikkala due to EU sanctions, and in Lieksa Inari - due to the suspension of wood imports.
Number of border crossing points has decreased over years
Temporary border crossing points on the Finnish-Russian border have been repeatedly shortened. At the turn of the millennium, more than ten temporary border crossing points were still operating.
"They were created to import raw wood from Russia to Finland for industrial use," says the deputy head of the Border Service Department, Marko Saareks.
Parikkala Municipality opposes
The local authorities want the border crossing to remain. But they hope that an international border crossing point will probably be opened in Parikkala.
According to the city, the closure of Inari should be avoided due to the presence of raw wood. The city believes that the possibility of expanding the wood supply area beyond the eastern border should be preserved.
Certificate
The fourth international border crossing point was to open in southeast Finland in 2024. However, Russia's invasion of Ukraine put an end to dreams of internationalizing the Parikkala border crossing.
If it is decided to close the temporary checkpoints, it will be done by a protocol between the head of the Border Service and his Russian counterpart.
Closure of Finland's borders with Russia
On November 30, 2023, Finland decided to close all border crossings on the border with Russia. This was with the influx of illegal migrants from the Russian Federation.
In mid-December, the Finnish government reopened two checkpoints. However, due to a new wave of migrants, the border had to be closed again.
Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo rejected the possibility of opening the border with Russia. According to him, the problem with illegal migrants has not been solved.
Recently, the Finnish government decided to extend the border closure with Russia for two more months. Thus, the border checkpoints will remain closed at least until April 14.
