Not the Berlin Wall, but many more barriers: Finland fortifies 200 km of border with Russia
Kyiv • UNN
Finland is fortifying 200 km of its border with Russia, erecting a strong fence to prevent illegal migration. This decision was made after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and Finland's accession to NATO.
After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Finland joined NATO at a record pace, and later made a decisive decision to close its entire border with Russia indefinitely.
UNN reports with reference to The Guardian and Yleisradio.
Details
To prevent illegal migration and threats from Russia, Finland is strengthening a strong fence along the border with Russia.
Sections of fencing are being built along 120 miles (193 km) of the border, aimed primarily at stopping illegal migration.
The publication cites the opinion of Matti Pitkäniitty, commander of the North Karelia border district. The military believes that illegal border crossings by Russian migrants are likely to become an increasingly serious problem.
Pitkäniitty noted that most civilians who try to cross the border illegally prefer to stick to roads. This fact currently limits the number of potential routes, explains the Finn, pointing to a gap in the vegetation where an old Finnish rural road ran, which was built before the Soviet-Finnish war and the infamous border revision in 1940.
"People are afraid of these dense forests here," the border guard emphasizes, but for a Russian professional soldier, this would not be a problem, the material says.
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However, Finland is improving its border with Russia, and it is currently unknown exactly how many people with military training have actually managed to escape through Finnish fences.
It's not like the Berlin Wall. But we have a really good perimeter. There are many more barriers here.
Reference
Starting in November 2023, Finland gradually closed all checkpoints on the eastern border in response to Russia's instrumentalization of immigration. In December 2023, the government decided to open two checkpoints, but asylum seekers continued to enter the country.
After that, it was decided to completely close the eastern border.
In April 2025, the government announced that the eastern border would remain closed.
At the same time, according to YLE, the border service can issue a permit, for example, based on health status: dozens of people have already received permission to cross the border.
Recall
The easternmost NATO member states are facing a sharp increase in radio and satellite interference. The authorities of the Baltic countries claim that the interference has significantly increased in recent months, affecting air and sea communications.