Barbarians behind the wall. The Finns finished a 200-kilometre barrier at the border with Russia

Finland completed the construction of an about 200-kilometre barrier on the east border with Russia. The decision to build it was made in late 2022, respective months after the Kremlin launched a full-scale war against Ukraine.

The immediate impetus for the work that began in 2024 was the migratory pressure: in the autumn of 2023, about a 1000 migrants from 3rd countries who were planning to apply for asylum arrived in Finland from Russia. In response, Finland closed the full east border in December that same year. The metallic barrier at the Finnish-Russian border was created primarily close roads, border crossings and trails, which most frequently were moved by migrants.

The barrier is 3.5 metres advanced and was topped with barbed wire. The infrastructure is complemented by patrol roads and monitoring and surveillance systems. The longest, about 140 km long section was created in the south-eastern part of the country.

Finland's Minister of the Interior, Mari Rantanen, stresses that with a border of more than 1,300 km with Russia, the current safeguards may not be sufficient.