TEXT: AKSANA KUROLA Flexibly from one situation to another Long distances and wide wilderness regions have shaped the methods used by the Lapland Border Guard District. It is important to be able to utilise the LBGD's resources very flexibly in accordance with the focal point of the operations. Colonel Jari Tolppanen, Commander of the Lapland Border Guard District, is responsible for all of this. You do not really realise how large a coun-try Finland is until you look at it from the north. As an administrative unit, the Lap-land Border Guard District monitors by far the largest area. The operational area of the LBGD cov-ers the entirety of the Province of Lapland, with the exception of Tornio. It comprises 1,608 kilometres of national border, of which the share of the border with Rus-sia is 380 km, Norway 736 km and Sweden 488 km. The challenging conditions, long dis-tances, wide wilderness regions and, as a special characteristic, the harsh weather of the north set certain requirements for the operations of the LBGD. - The Border Guard's resources on the eastern border are sufficient for basic control when the situation on the border is stable. If the situation on the eastern border becomes more difficult than today for a long period of time, our resources will be insufficient, emphasises the com-mander, Colonel Jari Tolppanen. Tolppanen has worked at the LBGD since the beginning of 2015, before which he worked at the Border Guard Headquar-ters. Previously, he worked in the Kainuu and North Karelia Border Guard Districts, and this is also his second time at the LBGD. The colonel has a good perception of the situation on the eastern border. Tolppanen knows that in Lapland, the challenge of border control is made easier by the wide tracts of wilderness on both sides of the eastern border. In these wil-derness conditions, the risks of illegal bor-der crossings are lower than in Southeast Finland, where the residential areas are in close contact with the border. There are very few illegal border crossings over the wilderness sections of the border. The distances are long, and the units have large operational areas. The Kel- 58 RAJAMME VARTIJAT
Rajamme Vartijat 3-2016
To see the actual publication please follow the link above