Finland continues to file makes an attempt to export items to Russia which can be topic to sanctions as a result of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, regardless that the Finnish-Russian border was closed final 12 months.

Supply: Finnish public service media firm Yle, as reported by European Pravda

Particulars: Primarily based on Finnish customs information, over 900 pre-trial investigations have been opened since 2022 into the unlawful export of products underneath sanctions. Earlier than that, just a few instances had been detected per 12 months.

The variety of such violations decreased in 2024 following the closure of the Finnish-Russian border, however they persist nonetheless.

Greater than half of the violations are minor and resolved by a penalty process, avoiding courtroom proceedings. These usually contain people crossing the border with small portions of sanctioned objects, reminiscent of luxurious items.

The remaining offences usually contain deliberate makes an attempt to export items that would probably be utilized by the Russian navy.

For instance, in October 2024, Finnish customs launched an investigation right into a prison scheme involving an organization primarily based in Finland's east that transported drones, sonar tools, processors and different electronics price a number of hundred thousand euros to Russia.

In these schemes, sanctioned items are falsely declared as being destined for Central Asia or the Balkans, whereas their precise vacation spot is Russia.

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