Finland has closed off all but one of its border crossings with Russia on November 23 in an effort to stem the tide of asylum seekers arriving at the crossing, believed to have been ferried there by the Kremlin to destabilise the country.

Russia has been busing migrants, mostly from the Middle East, to within 50 km of its long border with Finland and then either making them walk through the snow and ice to the border or giving them bicycles for the last stretch in what is widely being seen as an effort to clog up the border and swamp the Finnish authorities with refugee applications.

Finland has already responded last week by closing all but four land crossings between the two countries, funnelling the migrants into two crossings in an effort to restrict the flows and process them.

Other countries have been similarly affected, with Estonia also threatening to close its border to Russia. Norway announced that it is ready to follow Finland’s lead and close its checkpoint on the border with Russia, Norwegian television station TV2 reported on November 22 , citing Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store.

When asked if Norway should close the Storskog checkpoint, he said: "If it is necessary." He stressed that Norway is keeping a close eye on the situation both in Finland and in Estonia.

The refugee crisis is reminiscent of a similar crisis in November 2021, when Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko flew in hundreds of migrants from the Middle East and bused them to his border with Poland and Lithuania, where they became trapped in no man’s land in freezing conditions. Several migrants died of exposure in the resulting standoff. Both Poland and Lithuania closed their borders in response and have since built extensive security fences there.

In the current escalating crisis the Finnish government alleges the arrival of the migrants is the result of a deliberate Moscow policy to push the asylum seekers to the country's frontiers.

Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo stated that, as of the end of November 24, only the northernmost border crossing with Russia, Raja-Jooseppi, will remain open. Last week Finland had already closed four of its eastern border checkpoints and is set to shut three of the four remaining crossing points.

Since the start of November, over 600 asylum seekers have entered Finland from Russia, a significant surge compared with just a few dozen in September and October, Al Jazeera reports. They are mostly from countries such as Yemen, Afghanistan, Kenya, Morocco, Pakistan, Somalia and Syria.

Finnish border guards and soldiers have begun erecting barriers, including concrete obstacles topped with barbed wire, at some of the crossing points.

Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen expressed the belief that Russia is instrumentalising migrants as part of its "hybrid warfare" against Finland, although Moscow has denied such allegations.

After decades of famously taking a neutral stance in relations with its massive neighbour, relations between Moscow and Helsinki have taken a dramatic turn for the worse after Finland abandoned its neutral policy and pragmatic relations with Russia to join Nato, creating a long border between Russia and the military alliance.

Russia threatened “consequences” following the decision. Finland has already completed the membership process, whereas Sweden’s application, which also decided to join the alliance at the same time, is tied up thanks to a Turkish veto.

Finland, a Nato member, joined the alliance in April. Its border with Russia serves as part of the European Union's external border and now constitutes Nato's northeastern flank.

Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated that Russian authorities are prepared to work with Finnish officials to reach an agreement on the border issue, emphasising that Finland should have presented its concerns and sought a mutually acceptable solution.

The situation at the border has been described as a "humanitarian crisis," with refugees and migrants arriving at the checkpoints facing harsh winter conditions, including temperatures of minus 20 degrees Celsius.

EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson expressed support for Finland, asserting that "the Finnish border is the EU's border" and that the European Union stands behind Finland. Johansson added that Finland has requested additional operational support from Frontex, the EU's border agency, and up to 60 officers.

1123 Russia Finland closes border migrant crisis map