Estonian Interior Minister Lauri Läänemets said authorities are weighing the potential closure of the Koidula border crossing with Russia to motor traffic. He shared this with the ERR broadcast portal and Interfax.
The minister indicated that the crossing could be shut after traffic analyses on the Estonian-Russian border are completed by the end of 2023.
“We plan to conduct these analyses in the second half of this year and then assess the implications to determine whether it is warranted to pursue this topic further. There is no decision yet; the research has only begun,” he explained.
The head of Estonia’s Internal Affairs Ministry cited the dramatic drop in border crossings, strained relations with the Russian Federation, and potential cost savings as factors in exploring the closure option. He noted that during the COVID-19 pandemic the number of crossings on the eastern border fell by nearly 80 percent and in Southern Estonia by almost half.
If Koidula were closed, travelers could still use the Luhamaa checkpoint, he stated.
Ermo Perolainen, Secretary General of the Estonian International Road Carriers Association, criticized the idea, warning that queues at the border would worsen if a checkpoint were shut while others are already clogged.
Currently five border crossings operate along the Estonian-Russian border, three for vehicles and two for trains.
Last November, Estonian authorities decided to close the Narva-2 checkpoint linking Narva with Ivangorod on the Russian border.