In Imatra, a test section of the razor wire fence is ready, which is being built on the border with Russia in southeastern Finland. The green metal fence is about 3 meters high and topped with razor wire forming a concertina barrier. However, the entire test section of the razor wire fence, about 3 kilometers long, will not be completed until the end of June. At a press conference on Tuesday morning, Border Guard project manager Ismo Kurki said the trial fencing should be completed by the end of July, about a month behind schedule, and would be operational in early August. The foundation of the fence is almost 100 percent ready, the nets and fence posts are almost completely in place. The concertina wire barrier has not yet been installed everywhere on top of the fence.
Experience in the construction of this section, including the operation of monitoring systems, lighting, video surveillance, ring roads, as well as the process of buying land from the owners, will be carried out in the coming months and years. At the first stage, it is necessary to protect more than 70 km of the border, mainly in the south-east of Finland (about 55 km) and North Karelia (about 7 km), and further north towards Lapland (total 10 km). After installing a trial fence and razor wire, and checking its functionality, the Border Guard will move on to the next phase of the project, which will involve the construction of about 75 kilometers of razor wire fencing along another part of the eastern border.