Finland completes eastern border fence as minister considers expansion

Finland has officially completed construction of a 200-kilometre fence along its eastern border, but more could be built later, Interior Minister Mari Rantanen said, according to Yle.

The completion was marked near the Nuijamaa border crossing in Lappeenranta, with representatives of the project management, contractors and the Finnish Border Guard in attendance. Rantanen and Border Guard chief Rear Admiral Markku Hassinen also attended.

Rantanen said the need for additional fencing should be assessed at some point. She also called for European Union funding for eastern member states to support similar projects.

She said the fence was needed because Europe’s security situation had changed significantly as a result of Russia’s war of aggression and various hybrid operations. In a speech at the Nuijamaa border station, Rantanen said every country had to protect its own security and the integrity of its borders.

According to Rantanen, the fence is not merely symbolic but a practical and necessary part of Finland’s border security. She added that it would not be sufficient on its own.

Rantanen said the border security law, for which a two-year extension is now being proposed, was also essential to preventing instrumentalised entry into the country.

Finland will not reopen its eastern border crossing points, Rantanen said, because the threat situation on the eastern border has not changed.

Construction took three years

Parliamentary groups agreed on the rapid construction of the fence in October 2022. Construction was tested in Pelkola, Imatra, towards the end of 2023, and the main work began in 2024.

Discussions about the fence began after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and Belarus increasingly used migrants as a tool of hybrid influence on the borders of Poland and the Baltic states. Finland subsequently began considering changes to its border legislation and the need for physical barriers along the eastern border.

About 380 million euros was allocated for the construction. The fence consists of a physical barrier topped with barbed wire, along with various sensors.

Most of the fence is in southeastern Finland

The 200 kilometres of fencing has been built at dozens of locations along Finland’s more than 1,300-kilometre eastern border.

The longest sections are in southeastern Finland and Kymenlaakso, where 140 kilometres of fencing has been built. North Karelia has 35 kilometres, while Kainuu, Koillismaa and Lapland have a combined 25 kilometres.

The fence was completed slightly ahead of schedule. Its purpose is to prevent unauthorised entry and instrumentalised entry, after large numbers of asylum seekers arrived at Finland’s border from Russia.