Finland Alleges Russia's Involvement in Facilitating Unauthorized Migrant Crossings

Finland's prime minister has accused Russia of aiding migrants in illegally entering the country, claiming that some have been assisted by Russian border guards. Officials in Finland have reported that migrants arrive by car and then cycle across the border in small groups before claiming asylum. As Finland shares a 1,340km (833-mile) border with Russia, which is the longest in Europe, the number of crossings has been increasing. Finnish border guards have registered approximately 60 crossings in 24 hours, compared to 91 in the four months leading up to November 12. Matti Pitkaniitty, a colonel in the Finnish border guard, revealed that the migrants include individuals from Iraq, Yemen, and Syria who have legally arrived in Russia but are not authorized to enter Finland, an EU member state. Though traditionally Russian guards did not allow people to arrive at the Finnish border without proper documents, Pitkaniitty mentioned that Russian authorities have recently changed their policy. Many of the migrants are taking advantage of an agreement that permits cycling across the border; however, Finland banned crossings by bike last week. The majority of these activities are concentrated around the border crossings at Nuijamaa and Vaalimaa in southeastern Finland. Prime Minister Petteri Orpo accused Russian authorities of facilitating the illegal crossings, asserting that the migrants are being helped and escorted to the border by border guards. In 2021, thousands of migrants from Middle Eastern and African countries entered EU member states Poland and Lithuania after flying to Belarus, a close Russian ally. The EU accused Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko of employing migration as a weapon of "hybrid warfare" to destabilize the bloc. Pitkaniitty commented that the current small numbers of illegal crossings remain manageable, and Finnish authorities are prepared to respond if the numbers increase. Interior Minister Mari Rantanen stated that the government is getting ready to enhance security at the border. Pitkaniitty also noted that this route into the EU via Russia is safer for migrants compared to other methods like crossing the Mediterranean Sea. He added that once word spreads, there may be a rapid surge in numbers, as neither smugglers nor migrants know when the opportunity will end.