Finland permanently closes two border crossings with Russia

The Finnish Border Guard has permanently closed the temporary border crossing points Inari and Parikkala in the Lieksa district, with relevant signs already being removed.

Yle recalls that the Inari crossing was closed on 1 November 2021, and Parikkala on 19 April 2022. These decisions were made due to restrictions on the export of Russian timber at the time.

"This decision does not change the current situation in any way and will not affect local residents. It was a final decision to permanently close the Inari border crossing," Deputy Commander of the North Karelia Border Guard, Samuli Murtonen, said.

Reportedly, the decision to close the temporary border crossing points was made unanimously in October by the heads of the Finnish and Russian border guard services. 

Finland will now need to amend the government decree regarding border crossing points to officially eliminate the Parikkala and Inari crossings. 

Border guards have already begun removing signs indicating the locations of the border crossings. 

It is noted that the reopening of temporary crossing points may be possible in the future, as this is regulated by the agreement on border crossing points between Finland and Russia.

In April, the Finnish government left the border with Russia closed indefinitely to counter the hybrid migration crisis. 

Recently, it was reported that a fence has been partially constructed at the eastern border with Russia in the Finnish town of Vaalimaa.