Russia is steadily expanding its military infrastructure near its border with Finland, The New York Times reported.
Satellite images, verified by NATO, reveal new troop camps, storage facilities for armored vehicles, and reactivated airbases across northwestern Russia, extending into the Arctic.
Finland, which joined NATO on April 4, 2023, now shares an 830-mile border with Russia—the alliance’s longest.
Satellite images revealed that in Kamenka, about 65 kilometers from the Finnish border, over 130 tents have been erected at a previously inactive military base. These tents are estimated to house up to 2,000 personnel.
Further east in Petrozavodsk, the capital of Russia’s Karelia Republic, three large warehouses have been built, with a fourth under construction, reportedly able to accommodate around 50 armored vehicles.
Alakurtti, a garrison town just 50 kilometers from the border, has seen new military housing and vehicle storage built in recent months.
Military aviation activity is also increasing. At Severomorsk-2, an airfield that had been unused for two decades, helicopters have reappeared along the runway. This site lies 180 kilometers from the Finnish border and around 110 kilometers from Norway.
At Olenya airbase, located near the city of Olenegorsk in the Murmansk region, satellite images show a growing number of military aircraft, including Russia’s long-range Tu-22 bombers, which have been used in Ukraine. The base lies within 150 kilometers of Finland.
According to Finnish defense officials, the current low troop presence could expand rapidly once the conflict in Ukraine eases. Janne Kuusela, policy director at Finland’s Ministry of Defense told NYT that his government expects a significant increase in Russian forces near the border in the next five years.
Russia’s military expansion follows its announcement to increase forces and establish new units in response to Finland and Sweden joining NATO after Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Sweden’s Chief of Defense, Michael Claesson, said such developments were expected. “When we applied for NATO membership, Russia said it would take such steps. We are now seeing that happen,” he told Swedish news site SVT Nyheter.
