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Finland Hikes Infrastructure Security After Nord Stream Leaks

Russian threat on Finnish infrastructure has risen: intelligence
Source: Pixabay

Finland said Thursday it will increase the security of critical infrastructure after alleged sabotage caused massive leaks in the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea.

“We issued an order to all branches of government to ensure the preparedness and enhancement of security measures for various critical infrastructure,” Finance Minister Annika Saarikko told reporters.

Critical infrastructure includes power grid networks and water supplies.

Attention would particularly be placed on the Baltic Connector pipeline, which is an important source of gas for Finnish industry, Saarikko explained.

Gasgrid, the Finnish state-owned company responsible for the pipeline, has increased its own “level of preparedness” and “security measures have been strengthened,” the minister added.

Saarikko noted that there were no reports of “specific threats” against Finland in the current situation.

“But these very exceptional and serious acts of sabotage also give us cause to step up our own preparedness.”

In neighbouring Sweden, two of the country’s three nuclear plants — Ringhals and Forsmark — have raised the alert level to “increased vigilance” due to the security situation.

A spokeswoman for the third, Oskarshamn, told AFP that they never comment on security arrangements.

Finland also said Thursday it will bar Russians with Schengen tourist visas from entering the country at midnight (2100 GMT) following a surge in arrivals after Moscow’s mobilisation order.

Finland’s Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said the mobilisation, as well as the recent events in the Baltic Sea, had a “significant impact” on the Finnish assessment.

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AFP

Agence France-Presse (AFP) is a French international news agency headquartered in Paris, France. Founded in 1835 as Havas, it is the world's oldest news agency.







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