The authorities of Finland announced their readiness to close all remaining checkpoints on the land border with Russia due to the uncontrolled inflow of refugees from Iraq, Syria and Somalia, IltaLehti wrote.
According to the publication, the government of Finland chaired by Prime Minister Petteri Orpo may make such a decision as early as Monday, November 20. The checkpoints on the border between Finland and Russia may thus be closed on November 22 at night.
Russian MP Mikhail Sheremet said that Helsinki adopted "Russophobic policies and destructive Baltic behavior" in its relationship with Russia.
Russian border guards comply with all rules on the border with Finland. Moscow does not accept Helsinki's far-fetched accusations, Kremlin official representative Dmitry Peskov said, TASS reports.
Russia does not contribute to the influx of refugees to Finland, he added.
"We do not accept such accusations. Those eligible to crossing the border may use the checkpoint. In this regard, our border guards fully comply with all official instructions,” Dmitry Peskov said.
Last week, Finland closed four checkpoints on the border with Russia. They were the largest in terms of traffic and the closest to St. Petersburg. It was said that Vaalimaa, Nuijamaa, Imatra and Niirala checkpoints would be closed from November 18 to February 18, 2024.
Political expert Vladimir Bruter explained in an interview with Pravda.Ru why the Finnish leadership chose an aggressive course against Russia. In his opinion, this is happening due to the fact that Finland is located next to Russia.
"This is probably because Finland borders on Russia directly. This is the closest country. Like Poland, they seem to be trying to show the collective West that they are the vanguard of the fight against Russia,” Bruter told Pravda.Ru.
Russia may take responsive measures and close the border between the countries. However, this is not going to happen within a few days.