Calm at the Nordic Borders to Russia - Mobilized Russians Will Now Be Denied Passports

The situation at Finland's eastern border to Russia is calm, says Finland's Minister of the Interior at a press conference on Wednesday. That is reported by Finnish Yle.

The number of border crossings and partly asylum applications from Russian citizens in Finland has increased after Russia's partial mobilization last Wednesday. At the same time, the traffic over the border is still at a lower level than before the COVID pandemic.

On Tuesday, around 7000 Russian citizens crossed the border to Finland, and around 3300 returned, reports the Finnish Border Guard. The majority of Russians who travel to the country, continue on to other European states, according to the Minister of the Interior.

The fact that traffic across the border has increased, but is far from the level before the pandemic, is also true for the Norwegian-Russian border at Storskog, Northern Norway. On Tuesday, 295 persons traveled to Norway, where 254 were required to have a visa, and 108 persons traveled out of the country, write Finmark Police District on Twitter.

On Wednesday evening, the Russian government announced that Russians who have been called up for military services will not be issued passports, reports the Norwegian broadcaster, NRK. A passport and visa are required for entry to Norway and Finland. In the past, there have been reports that the Russian government has limited people's access to the border to Georgia, which Russians do not need a passport to enter.