EU sends border police to Finland over fears Russia is behind migrant influx
HELSINKI — The European Union’s border agency said Thursday it will send dozens of officers and equipment as reinforcements to Finland to help police its borders amid suspicion that Russia is behind an influx of migrants arriving to the country.
Frontex said it expects a “significant reinforcement” of 50 border guard officers and other staff, along with patrol cars and additional equipment, to be put in place as soon as next week.
More than 800 migrants without proper visas and documentation have arrived in Finland so far since August, with more than 700 in November alone by the end of Wednesday — compared to a few dozen in September and October. They include people from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen,
Kenya, Morocco and Somalia.
Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, who addressed lawmakers at Parliament on Thursday, called the situation “a serious disruption of border security” that affects the national security of Finland, whose population is 5.6 million.
“Finland cannot be influenced, Finland cannot be destabilized,” Orpo said with a decisive tone. “Russia started this, and Russia also can stop it.”
The Kremlin denies the allegations.
On Wednesday, Finnish border guards and soldiers began erecting barriers, including concrete obstacles topped with barbed wire at some crossing points on the Nordic country’s lengthy border with Russia.
The government decided to close four busy Russia border crossings in southeastern Finland last week over suspicions of foul play by Russian border officials. It plans to leave only one Arctic crossing point open for migrants seeking asylum.
Frontex executive director Hans Leijtens said sending border reinforcements is “a demonstration of the EU’S unified stand against hybrid challenges affecting one of its members.”
Finland has nine crossing points on the 830-mile border with Russia, which serves as the EU’S easternmost frontier and is a significant part of NATO’S northeastern flank. Finnish authorities believe that Russia has become more hostile toward Finland since the country joined NATO in April.