NEW YORK, November 1. /TASS/. Unemployment in the Finnish town of Imatra has reached 15%, well above the national average of 9.1%, after the Finnish authorities closed the border with Russia, Bloomberg reports.

Imatra has a population of 25,000. Before the closure of the border in November 2023, the town was a popular resort among Russians. Now the city is devoid of Russian tourists, costing the regional budget 1 million euros daily. Many shops are closed, and local companies are laying off staff, the agency says. The region of South Karelia, the town is part of, also leads the country in terms of the fastest-growing youth unemployment.

"A common refrain in Imatra is whether there should be a plan for when peace eventually comes to Ukraine – when and under what conditions the border could reopen. Many locals feel that conversation can’t happen now; when the national leadership isn’t talking about it, no one is," Bloomberg says.

Instead, Jaakko Jappinen, head of marketing and tourism at the city administration, is working on a new city development strategy, which is expected to help offset the loss of tourism with Russia, the agency writes. According to him, city authorities now want to attract tourists from other countries, luring them with the local nature and cycling opportunities. Furthermore, the city may join a new special economic zone and reorient its economy toward new, environmentally friendly energy sources and battery production, the agency notes.

Airport without passengers

The lack of Russian tourists also affected the fate of the airport located in Lappeenranta. On October 30, it handled its last scheduled flight of the year. As the airport's information service explained to TASS, the airport will cease operations until the end of December 31st, with only one-time flights permitted by special requests. The airport has no information yet on whether it will operate in the new year, and if so, under what conditions.

It was previously reported that Lappeenranta Airport could permanently close due to losses caused by the lack of tourists from Russia.

According to public broadcaster Yle, in 2011, the airport was the fifth-busiest international airport in Finland, with the majority of tourists arriving from St. Petersburg. Passenger traffic from Russia declined significantly in 2014, and the COVID-19 pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine have only worsened the situation. City authorities have invested approximately 12 million euros annually in the airport's operations for 10 years. However, its continued operation is under threat due to the European Union's disapproval of supporting unprofitable airports with public funds.