Russia’s trade representative in Helsinki, Anton Loginov, pointed out that the Finnish authorities have tightened restrictions on the purchase of land, including for Russian citizens, under the pretext of ensuring national security.

He explained that it is now required to obtain a license from the Ministry of Defense for the ownership of land by persons who do not have citizenship of the EU countries, as well as companies with a capital of 10% or more owned by citizens or companies from a country outside the European Union.

Loginov noted that “in 2022, a number of changes and additions were proposed to these parameters. According to them, the Ministry of Defense received the right to know the origin of the money for which the site was purchased. The Ministry of Defense also received the right to determine the permissible distance between the specified land and structures and the positions of the Finnish army or border troops.

Loginov noted that initially the Russian side considered this license as an administrative barrier, created, among other things, to make it difficult for companies with Russian investments, which are especially active in eastern Finland, to work.