Finland’s 1,340 kilometre border with Russia is the longest of any European Union member
The construction of barbed-wired fence along Finland’s long border with Russia – primarily meant to curb illegal migration – has broken ground near the southeastern town of Imatra less than two weeks after the Nordic country joined NATO as the 31st member of the military alliance.
The move was seen as a show of muscle by Moscow. The issue was settled when Finnish President Sauli Niinistö held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The flow of migrants stopped shortly thereafter. “Border barrier fence was no kind of political topic before the war . And actually, it wasn’t a kind of plan of the Finnish border guard,” Brig. Gen. Jari Tolppanen, head of the technical division at the Finnish Border Guard, told the Associated Press. “All changed after the attack .”
Imatra is located a mere seven kilometres off the Russian industrial town of Svetogorsk in the Karelia region and is a few hours’ drive away from Russia’s second city of St. Petersburg. The town has a long history in dealing with Russians – tourists, day-trippers and permanent residents alike.
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