The European Union’s border agency says that it will send dozens of officers and equipment as reinforcements to Finland to help police its borders amid suspicion that Russia is behind an influx of migrants arriving to the country.

The European Union’s border agency said Thursday that it will send dozens of officers and equipment as reinforcements to Finland to help police its borders amid suspicion that Russia is behind an influx of migrants arriving to the country.

Frontex said that it expects a “significant reinforcement” made up of 50 border guard officers and other staff, along with patrol cars and additional equipment, to be put in place as soon as next week.

More than 800 migrants without proper visas and documentation have arrived in Finland so far since August, with more than 700 in November alone by the end of Wednesday — compared to a few dozen in September and October. They include people from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Kenya, Morocco and Somalia.

  • barsoap@lemm.eeEnglish
    22·
    1 year ago

    If this is anything like the Belarus situation (which I assume) then people were brought there on the promise of getting into the EU and, when that didn’t materialise, weren’t given the opportunity to leave Russia via any other means: They were bussed to the EU border and told to walk towards it and worse:

    A group of Yazidi migrants complained to reporters that they were beaten by Belarusian border guards when they tried to return to Iraq after an unsuccessful attempt to sneak to Poland. The guards, according to these people, forced them to stay on the border.

    Also:

    Belarusian authorities refused to accept the Polish humanitarian aid intended for migrants who got stuck on the Belarusian-Polish border at least twice, in August and October.

    Reactions, btw, included Iraq and Turkey suspending flights to Belarus.