Another Wall in the Making: Why Finland is fortifying its border along Russia

Finland has started building a 200-kilometre fence on its border with Russia to bolster security. On Tuesday (28 February), the pilot phase of the project began where a 3-kilometre fence will be constructed on the southeastern border crossing in Imatra, reported Reuters. Finland shares 1,340 kilometre border with Russia, the longest of any European Union country. Let’s understand why Finland is building a fence along its border with Russia. Finland decides to put barriers As per the Finnish Border Guard, the barrier fence will be 10 feet tall with barbed wire on top. The 3km pilot project at Imatra is expected to be completed by the end of June. Once forest clearance is done, road construction and fence installation will start, following which night vision cameras, lights and loudspeakers will be set up at certain sections of the fence, as per reports. ABC News reported that a 300-meter barrier fence will also be established in the Immola garrison area during this phase. The construction of another 70-kilometre fence will begin between 2023 and 2025, with a focus on border crossing points and adjacent areas in southeast Finland, Reuters reported citing the country’s border guard authority.

The barrier, estimated to cost around 380 million euros ($393 million), will span 15 per cent of Finland’s border with Russia after completion, say reports. Besides the barrier wall, authorities in the Nordic country will also erect an adjacent road for the movement of border patrols and a camera surveillance system. “In the assessment of the Finnish Border Guard, the changed security environment has made it necessary to construct a barrier fence along part of the eastern border,” Ismo Kurki, project manager for the eastern border barrier fence, said in an interview on Wednesday (1 March), as per The Washington Post. The development comes after Finnish prime minister Sanna Marin announced last October that there was consensus among lawmakers to build a fence for some parts of the border with Russia.

Currently, Finland’s borders are equipped with light wooden fences, mostly to prevent stray livestock.

Last November, Colonel Vesa Blomqvist, border guard commander in southeastern Finland, had said the proposed fence would strengthen border control significantly. “The fence gives border guard patrols more reaction time by revealing movement of people and preventing, slowing down and directing movement,” Blomqvist had said in a statement, as per AP. Why is Finland building a fence? Finland’s decision to fortify its borders comes in the backdrop of Russia’s war in Ukraine. In July last year, Finland’s parliament passed legislation to allow the construction of barriers on the country’s border with Russia. After President Vladimir Putin announced the partial mobilisation of reservists to fight in the Ukraine war on 21 September 2022, Finland saw a large number of Russians crossing its border. Around 17,000 Russians fled to Finland in that September weekend alone, Reuters reported citing Finnish authorities. [caption id=“attachment_12231262” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Thousands of Russians entered Finland through border crossings last September. Reuters File Photo[/caption] Soon, Finland sprung to action and banned Russian citizens with tourist visas from entering the country, citing security concerns related to Russia’s conflict with Ukraine. Finland fears Russia could weaponise mass migration to exert political pressure, as per reports. Marin had said last October that the purpose of this new barrier would be to help border guards track and prevent possible large-scale illegal migration seen as a “hybrid threat” from Moscow, reported AP. Brigadier General Jari Tolppanen told AFP in November last year that though the Finland-Russia border has “worked well” in the past, Moscow's war in Ukraine has altered the security situation “fundamentally”. “Russia implements border control of traffic moving from Russia into Finland, thus preventing attempts at illegal entry. If Russia reduces its border control, this may cause additional pressure at the Finnish end to control illegal entry. Finland cannot rely on the effectiveness of Russian border control,” Finnish Border Guard said on its website, as per ABC News.  Klaus Dodds, a professor of geopolitics at Royal Holloway, University of London, has called this new fencing a “barbed-wire curtain,” reported The Washington Post. “Barbed-wire fencing, drones and surveillance cameras are being put to work,” he said, adding, “Europe is fortifying.” [caption id=“attachment_12231282” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Currently, Finland’s borders with Russia are equipped with light wooden fences. AFP File Photo[/caption] Finland’s NATO bid Finland has also intensified efforts to join the Western defensive military alliance NATO. After Russia’s war in Ukraine, Helsinki abandoned its decades-long policy of military non-alignment and decided to apply for NATO membership. This week, the Nordic country’s parliament approved legislation that will allow the country to join NATO. Finland now awaits the approval of Hungary and Turkey to become a part of the defensive bloc. With inputs from agencies Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News ,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.