Finland's Closure of the Border with Russia Is Unprecedented
Historically, most long border closures have been related to war or territorial disputes. However, this is not the case on Finland’s eastern border.
The 1,300-kilometer-long border between Finland and Russia has been closed for over 900 days. The closure is unparalleled in the European Union in terms of its length.
However, on a global scale, the border closure is by no means the longest, says Jussi P. Laine, professor of border studies at the University of Eastern Finland.
Perhaps the most famous closed border is located on the Korean peninsula.
The border between North Korea and South Korea has been closed for over seven decades following the war.
Travel from one Korea to the other is only possible through a third country, such as China.
The approximately 1,500-kilometer-long border between Morocco and Algeria has been closed since 1994. The reason is political tensions between the countries.
The border between Turkey and Armenia has been closed since 1993.
Turkey closed the border as a show of solidarity with Azerbaijan, against which Armenia was at war at the time.
War Usually Closes Borders
Finland closed its eastern border to all passenger traffic on December 15, 2023. The government has since extended the closure several times.
It most recently decided in early June to keep the border closed for the time being.
The Finnish government justifies the closure of the eastern border by the threat of instrumentalized entry.
The fear is that when the border opens, Russia would once again allow third-country nationals who do not have documents entitling them to enter Finland to enter.
“Historically, many long border closures have been related to war, occupation or unresolved territorial disputes,” says Jussi P. Laine.
Also, infectious diseases can close borders, as was seen during the corona pandemic.
Three Special Features
According to Henrik Nielsen, a researcher who defended his PhD in border studies at the University of Eastern Finland this year, what is interesting about the closure of the border between Finland and Russia is that it is not due to a state of war between the countries.
Another interesting feature is that other European Union countries have not imposed a similar closure due to instrumentalized entry.
The Finnish border closure can still be circumvented by traveling to Russia via neighboring countries Estonia or Norway, for example.
Escalated Quickly
Thirdly, the closure of the eastern border is a unique measure in that it used to be very busy.
It was often talked about as the most functional border that Russia had with any of its neighbors.
According to Nielsen, the speed with which the border between the countries went from smooth cooperation to completely closed was astonishing.
“Many localities, such as Imatra, suffered great economic damage from the closure of the border,” says Nielsen.
Before the corona period, Russian tourists alone left hundreds of millions of euros in South Karelia each year.
Freight Traffic Is Still Flowing
According to Henrik Nielsen, each border is unique, and comparisons between them are not simple. Borders are rarely completely closed, but there are often exceptions to border crossings.
The Vainikkala border crossing between Finland and Russia is still open to freight train traffic, as it carries Russian fertilizers that are of humanitarian importance to the world.
Finns working on the Saimaa Canal, for example, can also access the Russian side for work.
Could One Crossing Be Opened?
The closure of the eastern border to passenger traffic has made it difficult for dual citizens of Finland and Russia to visit relatives, for example.
Professor of Border Studies Jussi P. Laine believes that Finland could test opening the border at one border crossing.
This would serve as a practical test of whether instrumental entry will continue.
However, opening the border is not currently in sight.
The special military operation in Ukraine is also continuing, and it is increasingly visible as attacks also within Russia’s borders.
The closure of Finland’s eastern border, which lasted for over 900 days, does not yet shake the world’s top ranking in terms of duration.
“In light of history, however, one of the biggest risks of states of emergency is that they become normal. Solutions intended to be temporary gradually turn into permanent practices,” says Laine.
Source: Yle (in Finnish)