NATO’S NEW NORTHERN FLANK: Russia warns of tension as Finland shuts last border crossing.
The northern crossing at Raja-Jooseppi closed for two weeks at 14:00 (12:00 GMT) on Wednesday, after Helsinki accused Russia of channelling asylum seekers towards Finland.
Finland says it has become the target of a Russian “hybrid operation”.
Some 900 asylum seekers have crossed the border this month.The influx is dramatically higher than the previous number of barely one a day and Finland’s border guard says before August 2023 Russian authorities barred foreign citizens from travelling to the area without the necessary visas.
The takeaway here is that a nation of fewer than six million people was willing to close their border over 900 illegals and to get the job done in a matter of weeks.