Finland says it will "significantly restrict" Russian citizens from entering the country after President Vladimir Putin's decree announcing a partial mobilization of military reservists for the war in Ukraine triggered an exodus from Russia that has clogged its borders.
The Finnish government said in a statement on September 23 that its decision to limit the number of Russians entering the country was needed because the influx had done "serious damage to Finland's international position."
The statement gave no details on potential measures that will be taken to restrict border crossings or when they would take effect.
Reuters quoted a Finnish border guard as saying that the number of Russians trying to cross into the country appeared to have more than doubled on September 23 from the previous day, when an estimated 7,000 entered from Russia.
Finland has remained one of the few entry points into Europe from Russia since Moscow's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in late February prompted many European countries to close their physical borders and ban Russian planes from their airspace.
