Number of people heading from Russia to Estonia significantly growing. Border guards explain why
Photo: Border guards explain why more and more people try to cross Russian-Estonian border (facebook.com/politseijapiirivalveamet)
More and more people are arriving from Russia at the border crossing in Narva. Their purpose is to obtain a ban on entry into the EU, says Marek Liiva, head of the Narva border crossing.
"Narva border guards turn away dozens of third-country citizens every day. Most of them are Moldovan residents who, in reality, do not want to enter the European Union," the statement said.
Liiva mentioned that issuing entry bans is a daily activity for border guards. The reasons usually include the lack of proper documents or the individual's inability to explain which EU country they intend to visit and what they plan to do there. In such cases, they are sent back.
"However, in recent months, the number of entry bans issued at the Narva border crossing has significantly increased. If previously about 10 people were turned back from the border per day, now it is approximately three times more," he said.
Why the number of arrivals at the border increased
According to Liiva, Moldovan citizens themselves stated that in Russia, there is a rule: every three months, they must register that they have left the country, and then they can return and stay in Russia for up to 90 days. Their goal is simply to reach the border, get a stamp in their passport, and return to Russia.
He mentioned that the entry ban is one-time, and the same person may reappear at the Narva border crossing after three months to obtain a new stamp in the passport.
Moldovan citizens explained to border guards that this process is repeated several times before they obtain a residence permit or citizenship in Russia. For Narva border guards, this means additional work.
Migration crisis on the Finland border
To recap, on November 30, the Finnish government decided to close all border crossing points with Russia. This decision was made in response to a significant number of illegal migrants attempting to enter Finland from the Russian territory.
As previously noted by Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, the government is closely monitoring the situation at the border and may extend the closure.
On December 13, the Finnish government decided to reopen two border crossing points with Russia. However, the following day, due to an influx of migrants, they were closed again.
