Russia will not resume ties with Finland — senator

Despite the wishes of some Finnish politicians, Russia will not resume ties with Finland, because the current Finnish elites have tainted themselves with militant Russophobia, said Vladimir Dzhabarov, chairman of the Federation Council Commission for the protection of state sovereignty of the Russian Federation.

Right now, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo is thinking about creating a special economic zone in the south-east of the country, which previously flourished due to trade with Russia, the senator noted. He is concerned about the difficult economic situation both in this territory and throughout Finland.

"However, let's not forget that at the same time Russophobic hysteria continues at the elite level in Finland. One gets the impression that the same President Alexander Stubb, who plays the role of a mediator for the Europeans to retell their anti-Russian plans to Donald Trump, is not at all interested in cutting social benefits, spending on education and healthcare and other problems of the population. He constantly reminds of the Soviet-Finnish war, inspires his voters that Russia allegedly wants to attack Europe," Dzhabarov stressed.

Therefore, the senator said, many of Stubb's "decisions look, to put it mildly, idiotic," and therefore "Finland found itself in the company of countries that have tainted themselves with militant Russophobia and with which it is not worth building any economic relations." Such interaction does not meet our interests, Jabarov concluded.

Earlier, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo expressed support for the creation of a special economic zone in the city of Imatra bordering Russia.

"I think we should be ready to try something new, a special economic zone could be just such a step," he said in a comment to broadcaster Yle.

At the same time, as Orpo noted, the SEZ status itself does not mean anything, concrete proposals on real incentives and taxation mechanisms are needed. He added that he was aware of the difficult situation in South Karelia and Imatra, which suffered from the closure of the border.