Prime Minister Petteri Orpo on Friday called attention to the special needs arising from Finlands long land border with Russia. The Premier held a meeting with President of the European Commission (EC) Ursula von der Leyen in Helsinki and led discussions on European security, Finlands role as a country on the external border of the EU and efforts to strengthen the EUs defence, said an official press release. The meeting was held on the Border Guard patrol vessel Turva off the coast of Helsinki. In the discussion, Orpo also highlighted Finlands active contributions to supporting Ukraine. The EC President made the visit as a part of her tour of the countries on the eastern border of the EU. “This understanding can be seen in the Commissions proposal for the EUs next multiannual financial framework. The funding allocated to Finland for border control is being increased to EUR 1.6 billion, which is one billion more than at present,” “It is precisely this funding that we can use to support the vitality of Eastern and Northern Finland, as this is also a key component of our comprehensive security strategy and the security of our border regions,” said Orpo. He said that the threat posed by Russia will not disappear even after the war in Ukraine is over. “Putin cannot be trusted. Russia has already moved troops towards the eastern edge of Europe. Europe must respond to this and act with unity and determination to show that we take European defence seriously,” he added. During the visit, von der Leyen was also briefed on how Finland monitors maritime traffic, including the movements of the Russian “shadow fleet”. The EC President also met with President Alexander Stubb during her visit to Helsinki.