Increased Border Security Waiting on Treaty Ratification, Says Police Chief
The head of the police force's Southern Prefecture, Tarmo Kohv, said the border with Russia is protected but a border treaty would make it easier to guard the border.
“The biggest problem with protecting the border is that the Estonian-Russian border treaty has not been ratified,” he told ERR radio today.
When Estonia restored its independence, the country's de facto borders had changed compared to 1940, and ran a few kilometers further inland in the southeast and northeast. Estonian government officials agreed with Russia on the de facto border this February but Russia's invasion of Ukraine put the issue on the backburner and the treaty has not been ratified by either country's legislature. And the unratified treaty does include several minor changes in the location of the border.
Kohv said the national border has not been built up and is only marked temporarily, and with Russian signs. “Once the treaty is ratified, then the construction of border infrastructure can begin, which will make life easier for border guards,” Kohv added.
Speaking about the inconclusive meeting of Estonian and Russian border guard officials on Monday regarding the case of counterintelligence official Eston Kohver, Kohv said the meeting took four hours and that they will try again on Wednesday.
He said a document has been signed which states that a border violation took place on Friday with movement from Russia to Estonia and back, but did not explain further.
Kohv said details of the incident will again be on the table.