Finland shuts its border to Russian Visitors

• Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said mobilisation order had a “significant effect” on country’s decision.
• Finland is closing its border to Russian tourists starting Friday – the latest of four EU neighbours to do so.
• Russians will still be able to visit relatives or for business and education in Finland.

Finland is closing its border to Russian tourists starting Friday – the latest of Moscow’s EU neighbours to do so.

Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania all barred their borders to Russian tourists earlier this month.

But Russians will still be able to visit relatives or for business and education in Finland, the foreign minister said.

The decision comes after the number of Russians crossing the border increased following President Vladimir Putin’s call-up of 300,000 military reservists.

Queues have formed at border crossings as people attempt to flee, with long lines forming at Russia’s border into Georgia, which does not require a visa for travel.

Finland – which shares a 1,300km (800 mile) border with Russia and does require a visa – also reported an upsurge in persons seeking to cross the border following the partial mobilisation.

At a press conference on Thursday, Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said the mobilisation order had a “significant effect” on the country’s decision.

“The goal of the decision is to stop completely the current situation of Russian tourists going to Finland and going through Finland to get there,” he said.

Russians with Schengen tourist visas will also not be able to enter the country after midnight.

Mr Haavisto also said the flow of Russians was seen as endangering Finland’s international relations.

Russians visiting Finland will now need to apply for a visa in advance at a centre in Russia, with an invitation either from a business or personal contact.

This month, the European Union also decided to end a deal between the EU and Russia that made it easier and cheaper for Russians to get visas.

More than a million Russians have travelled to EU countries since the invasion of Ukraine in February.

In a separate move, four EU countries that border Russia – Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – imposed new restrictions and began turning away Russian tourists.

Norway also has a short border with Russia. It is not in the EU, but is part of the Schengen travel area, meaning Russians with the correct visas would be able to travel onwards to 25 other European countries in the bloc.

But Norway stopped a long-standing agreement with Russia that let people travel without a visa last week.

Norway has also reported a slight increase in crossings from Russia at its single checkpoint, Storskog following Mr Putin’s mobilisation announcement.

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