Estonia ends temporary control on Latvian border

• Published date: 25 May 2022
• Publication title: LETA

TALLINN, May 25 (LETA--BNS) The Estonian government at an extraordinary online session decided on the proposal of Minister of the Interior Kristian Jaani to end the temporary border control at the Estonian-Latvian border from Wednesday.

Temporary border control was introduced due to the escalation of Russia's military activities in Ukraine in order to get a better overview of the people coming to Estonia.

Minister of the Interior Kristian Jaani said that by now, the number of refugees arriving from Latvia has significantly decreased and the migration channels have changed -- most of the refugees arrive in Estonia from Russia, as military activity in Ukraine is mainly taking place in the eastern part of the country. According to the minister, an average of nearly 300 refugees a day have arrived in Estonia from Russia in recent days, while less than 100 have arrived from Latvia. Almost half of these refugees use Estonia as a transit country.

Jaani said that the border control fulfilled its purpose and Estonia received a useful overview of the people who had arrived during the big wave of the arrival of Ukrainian war refugees and enabled them to effectively guide them to the necessary services. "Doing away with border control will not prevent people leaving Ukraine due to military activity from being assisted at the border and referred to services in the future as well. Police patrols will continue to carry out random...