Finland bans Russians from buying property to protect national security

CopenhagenThe Finnish Parliament has passed a law banning Russian citizens who are not residents of the Nordic country from purchasing any type of property or housing, claiming that this poses a risk to national security.

Since the start of the war in Ukraine and the country's U-turn upon joining NATO, the Finnish government has been sounding the alarm. of the dangers and suspicions that war actions are being carried out from Moscow hybrid against the Nordic country. Among these risks, the Helsinki government sees the danger of Russian citizens with connections to the Kremlin government, but also to organized crime, acquiring properties near critical infrastructure for the country, such as power plants, military bases, and airports.

The text of the law, approved by a unanimous majority in Parliament, does not directly mention Russia. In practice, the ban will apply to those individuals or companies from outside the European Union that the government considers to violate the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of another state, or that pose a risk to Finland's infrastructure and national security. However, Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen did directly link the law's approval to the concern coming from Russia, stating: "The decision sends a clear message: we will not allow Finland's security to be put at risk."

Before the law was passed, the government submitted the proposed legislation in September 2024. At the time, the country's Prime Minister, Petteri Orpo, justified the measure by saying: "We see the fact that we have Russian and other foreign owners acquiring land as a potential threat to our security. Common sense tells us that if we see a justified risk to national security, we must act."

Finland fears espionage and sabotage

Russian citizens have been able to purchase all kinds of properties and homes in Finland for years, but since 2020, the Ministry of Defense has increased security controls for these transactions. The reason is that the Finnish secret services warned of the danger they posed, as the properties could be used for purposes beyond civilian use and could be used for espionage, sabotage, or in a hypothetical ground invasion.

Minister Häkkänen explained that over the past five years, more than 3,500 properties across the country linked to Russian owners have been monitored. According to Finnish media reports, some of these properties raised suspicions because they were summer houses equipped with large helipads or forest cabins unusually fortified with military equipment. Examples have also been found, such as the purchase by Russian investors of dilapidated hotels or empty logistics warehouses that have been inactive for years, but close to the surveillance checkpoints that the Finnish police maintain on the border with Russia.

According to public television YLE, among the Russian citizens whose properties have been investigated in the Nordic country is the oligarch and arms manufacturer Igor Kesaev, who is also linked to the Russian secret services. Kesaev acquired the land of an entire island on a major waterway in the southeast of the country, near the border with Russia. In the same region, a few years ago the Russian state-owned company Gazprom attempted to buy the land adjacent to a Finnish army barracks. The media Iltalehti A year ago, the Ministry of Defense published an extensive investigation listing 38 plots of land owned by Russians that were located near military weapons depots, telecommunications stations, and key infrastructure for water and electricity distribution.

The Ministry of Defense reported that 11 real estate transactions involving Russian citizens were blocked in 2024 after being deemed a security risk. However, the government clarified that the vast majority of property purchase applications by Russian citizens were approved, although the number of applications has plummeted in recent years.

Pushbacks at the Border

The approval of this ban follows broader measures currently being considered by the Finnish Parliament to protect its 1,340-kilometer eastern border. In July The government approved a controversial law that allows border guards to return asylum seekers coming from Russia.Parliament is now considering extending this measure indefinitely, despite criticism from human rights organizations. This Wednesday, the government announced that it will maintain the closure "until further notice."

Finnish authorities have accused Moscow of facilitating the arrival of migrants to the eastern border with the aim of "destabilizing" it, after a sharp increase in asylum applications was recorded at this point in the fall of 2023.