“Ready for any kind of attack”: the idyllic city of Finland at the forefront of tensions between Russia and NATO
“What if we are afraid? No, we are calm and prepared”.
Kimmo Jarva’s gestural language coincides with the tranquility of his words.
His voice does not tremble as he reaffirms the desire to Lappeenranta, a Finnish city that he is mayor of, for the country to join NATO despite repeated threats from the Kremlin.
These are not easy weeks for this idyllic city that sits next to the fourth largest lake in Europe and that wins awards for its cleanliness and environmental fight.
Just a 16 kilometers from the Russian border, Lappeenranta had been a perfect example of the good relations between Helsinki and Moscow, within the framework of the famous Finnish “pragmatism”.
The city boasts of having a special location and being the gateway between West and East, something that has transformed local commerce and industry, adding unique features to the local culture .
P But now, like the rest of the country, it leans toward NATO protection against a neighbor they no longer trust.
The Finnish government of Sanna Marin is taking rapid steps to join the military alliance led by the United States and other Western powers. An 62% of Finns support the decision.
But for those who have lived decades of good relations with their neighbor, the dramatic change in position will not be easy to reverse.
Decades of exchange
The citizens of Lappeenranta and other border cities are aware that the change in attitude will not be free.
“Since the pandemic, due to the restrictions, we lose one million euros every day because Russian tourists no longer come to our region to shop. Now, with the war and our steps to join NATO, we don’t know how long this situation will last,” says Kimmo Jarva, the city’s mayor, to BBC Mundo.
Lappeenranta has staged Like few cities in Finland, the benefits of good relations with Moscow.
Every year, a million and a half Russians crossed the border to enjoy its hospitality and its peaceful location next to Saimaa, the largest lake in the country.
It is also a destination known for its duty-free sales, which motivated thousands of Russians to come daily to fill their trunks with purchases and return home.
When the European Union imposed sanctions against Russia after the annexation of Crimea in 2014, the Kremlin responded by vetoing food imports from European countries. Lappeenranta then became the way for millions of Russians in the area to buy products banned in their country.
Business flourished for decades of from one side of the border to the other thanks to the exchange. The city, in fact, is closer to Saint Petersburg, the second largest city in Russia, than to Helsinki, the Finnish capital.
“We opened (tourist) offices in St. Petersburg and in Vyborg. I visited them every month. We cooperated, we organized press events. Everything was friendship and cooperation”, says Jarva.
But now there are hardly any vehicles at the border crossings. Both countries have effectively banned commercial and private traffic between the two territories.
The offices in St. Petersburg that advertised Lappeenranta as the gateway between Russia and the West have closed.
“ It will take many years and many changes for us to see that again”, laments the mayor.
A rapid change
For decades, Finland displayed a neutral behavior towards Russia. He assumed it after the end of World War II as a way to ensure peace against a much more powerful neighbor.
This behavior is Popularly known as “Finlandization”, a concept created by Finland to convince the former Soviet Union of its neutrality and in which generations of politicians and citizens believed.