Helsinki: The government of Finland announced that it has earmarked six million euros ($5.98 million) for the construction of a 3-km pilot section of a fence on the country’s border with Russia.
The section will test the method of construction, the functionality of the planned solutions, and the implementation of border control during construction, and will create practices for cooperation with landowners, Xinhua news agency quoted the government as saying in a statement on Thursday.
Interior Minister Krista Mikkonen said that the Border Guard plans to begin construction next year based on the experiences gained in the pilot.
At the end of September, the Finnish Border Guard suggested that a fence should be built to prevent unauthorized crossings from Russia.
The proposed fence will be between 130 and 260 km long along the country’s 1,300-km border with Russia.
Currently, the border has only a few small fences to prevent cattle from crossing.
The latest development comes as Finland has announced a series of measures against Russia in the wake of Moscow’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
Last month, the Nordic nation announced a ban on Russian citizens with tourist visas to enter Finland, as well as transit the country.
According to the government, the move aims to “completely prevent Russian tourism”.
Earlier this year, Finland along with Sweden also decided to join the NATO.
–IANS
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