The European tourist visa will no longer be sufficient to return to Finland for Russian citizens. Faced with a sharp increase in entries from Russia, Finland will close its borders from Thursday midnight (23:00 French time) to Russian citizens with European tourist visas from the Schengen area, the government announced.
The number of Russians returning to Finland this way has skyrocketed since the announcement of the “partial” mobilization by Vladimir Putin in the context of the war in Ukraine “had a significant impact” on the decision, said Foreign Minister Foreign of Finland, Pekka. Haavist.
“Illegal” annexation referendums in eastern Ukraine and the alleged sabotage of Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea “have heightened concerns,” the minister said.
Finland aligns itself with other countries
The Nordic country thus aligns itself de facto with the decision taken at the beginning of September by Poland and the three Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania), the other four countries of the European Union bordering Russia, Poland by the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad .
The measure was under discussion in Finland even before Vladimir Putin’s military order, due to the significant passage of Russian tourists during the summer that caused controversy in Finland. But Helsinki had just announced its next entry into force the night of the announcement of the mobilization in Russia.
A ban that won’t stop the Russians
“The decision is aimed at completely avoiding the current situation of Russian tourism in Finland and related transit through the country,” Pekka Haavisto told a news conference.
Helsinki acknowledged that its decision could result in an increase in asylum applications and attempts to cross the border illegally.
Source: BFM TV
