The European Border and Coast Guard Agency, commonly known as Frontex, has deployed approximately 50 guards to monitor the Finnish-Russian border amid accusations from Helsinki that Moscow is orchestrating the sending of irregular migrants to their shared border.
Frontex spokesperson Piotr Szwedalski informed Agence France-Presse (AFP) that they are currently deploying 55 personnel in Finland, the majority of whom are border guards assigned to monitoring duties. This support, announced in late November, is set to continue until the end of February. Szwedalski mentioned their readiness to adjust the deployment duration based on changing circumstances, acknowledging the Kremlin’s use of migration pressure as a tool, and thus anticipating its continuation.
Nearly 1,000 asylum seekers, mostly from Somalia, Iraq, and Yemen, have reached the 1,340-kilometer border dividing the two countries since early August, according to Finnish authorities. Helsinki accuses Moscow of deliberately sending these migrants to Finland in what it describes as a “hybrid operation.”
Finnish Border Guard officer Ville Jouskari noted that large groups of migrants from third countries remain near the border. While some have moved to other regions of Russia, either voluntarily or through authorities, Jouskari expects this border situation to persist for an extended period.
In mid-November, Finland closed four of its eight border crossings with Russia, eventually limiting passage to just one crossing in the far north of the country. By the end of November, the last border crossing was also closed. The Finnish-Russian relationship has been strained following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, prompting Helsinki to join NATO, led by the United States, in April.
