Finnish parliament backs proposal to build fence along Russian border

HELSINKI, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- A proposal to build a fence along parts of Finland's border with Russia received wide support from parties in the Finnish Parliament on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Sanna Marin convened the meeting to discuss the idea of building the fence, which would take up to four years to complete.

Marin told the media after the meeting that the government will now bring the project forward through a supplementary budget this autumn, with the first year of construction set to cost 140 million euros (138 million U.S. dollars).

Finland shares a land border of some 1,300 km with Russia, and the fence would cover around 300 km. Currently, the border has only a few small fences to prevent cattle from crossing.