Russia has temporarily suspended operations at seven railway border crossings with Finland, Estonia and Latvia, effective from July 1, according to a government decree issued a day earlier.
The order, published on June 30, directs Russia’s Foreign Ministry to formally notify Finland, Estonia and Latvia of the decision to halt the movement of people, vehicles, goods and cargo through designated railway checkpoints along the country’s western border. The decree did not specify the reasons for the suspension or indicate how long the restrictions would remain in place.
The affected crossings include three railway connections with Finland — Lyttä, Värtsilä and Enso — as well as Pechory-Pskovskiye on the Estonian border and Pytalovo on the Latvian border. The move came without prior public notice, surprising neighbouring countries.
Finland has already kept all road border crossings with Russia closed since November 2023, citing security concerns after accusing Russian authorities of facilitating the movement of migrants towards its border in what Helsinki described as a hybrid operation. Since those closures, rail traffic between the two countries has only been permitted through the Vainikkala border station near Lappeenranta.
According to Finland’s public broadcaster YLE, the Finnish Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday morning that it had not yet received an official notification from Moscow regarding the railway closures despite the Russian government’s directive.
The suspension is expected to disrupt cross-border freight and passenger rail services, particularly for cargo operators that have continued using railway links despite broader restrictions on land travel between Russia and the European Union.
The latest measure comes amid continued tensions between Russia and European countries following the deterioration of diplomatic and security relations in recent years. While road crossings between Finland and Russia have remained largely shut, railway routes had continued to provide one of the few remaining overland transport links between the neighbouring countries.