A rally took place outside the Finnish Parliament in Helsinki to protest the planned closure of checkpoints on the Russia–Finland border. One participant, identified as Anatoly, explained to reporters that authorities had approved the demonstration and that there had been no arrests. Reportedly, roughly 300 people attended the event near the parliament building.
Another participant noted that everything was peaceful and that the protest enjoyed official approval from the police.
A man referred to as Russian Peter, whose name has been altered for safety, said he could not join the rally. He emphasized that border restrictions have affected his family and expressed hope that petitions and demonstrations might influence policy decisions.
Peter described a split family situation, with his mother and stepfather living in Tampere. He lamented that neither he nor other relatives were present at the Helsinki rally. He argued that if a petition were to reach fifty thousand votes or more, it could draw government attention. He also suggested practical solutions such as ferry or train services that would reduce immigration pressures while accommodating the needs of families separated by the border. He recalled a time when buses crossing the border were filled with people visiting relatives from North America, Canada, and elsewhere.
Late on the night of November 18, four border checkpoints between Finland and Russia remained in operation. The checkpoints were Vaalimaa (Russian checkpoint Torfyanovka), Nuijamaa (Brusnichnoe), Imatra (Svetogorsk), and Niirala (Värtsilä). Three of these facilities lie within the Leningrad region, with the fourth located in Karelia. Around that afternoon, the latest two buses bound for Helsinki departed from the St. Petersburg bus terminal.
According to MTV3, citing various sources, the Finnish Ministry of Interior was considering a legislative proposal to seal the border with Russia entirely.
In Finland, a petition emerged calling on authorities not to close the border checkpoints on the Russian frontier. The petition argued that closing the four checkpoints would infringe on human rights and sever family ties, making it difficult for relatives on opposite sides to see one another. The campaign collected approximately ten thousand signatures.
Earlier, Finnish border guards described incidents at the border that drew attention to tension surrounding border policies and civilian safety. These developments fed into the broader conversation about how border controls affect families and communities across the region.