HELSINKI, January 10. /TASS/. Four people detained in Finland for violating the state border with Russia on Wednesday turned out to be third-country men, all of whom came from Russia and requested asylum, the Yle broadcaster reported.

Earlier on Wednesday, border guards in southeastern Finland reported on X (formerly Twitter) that four people had been detained in the town of Parikkala for violating the state border with Russia. They did not provide any other details.

Yle reports that border guards were informed about the intruders by a local resident who called the emergency center when unknown men appeared in his yard and started knocking on his windows.

Finnish authorities began reporting mass arrivals of individuals from third countries requesting international protection in early November 2023. All of them arrived through checkpoints on the border with Russia. The Finnish Migration Board has registered 1,323 asylum applications from people arriving across the border with Russia as of mid-December 2023, a spokesperson said earlier.

All land border crossings between Finland and Russia have been closed by the Finnish government until January 14 inclusive.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said earlier that Finland's decision to close border crossings creates new dividing lines in Europe, and Moscow's response to these actions will be worked out in an interdepartmental format.