Putin is building a new military base just 100 miles from NATO border

Russia has begun constructing a new military base eerily close to Finland’s eastern border for the first time since the USSR collapsed.

New aerial photos show a dozen new barracks under construction after work began in late 2025 to clear forest nearby.

The base could accommodate between 4,000 and 6,000 personnel, military expert and former Finnish intelligence officer Marko Eklund found.

The buildup of troops and the new base could pose a security issue for Finland, which shares an 830-mile border with Russia.

Elkund stressed, however: ‘You cannot build a modern armed forces with rusty tanks from Siberian training grounds, so this will require considerable time and money.’

Metro previously ventured to the border between Russia and Finland last summer after the Finnish government closed the eastern border because Russia was sending an influx of ‘refugees’ into the country.

Joel Linnainmäki, a research fellow at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, told Metro at the time that since the border closed, there was little to report – but the Finnish government is still wary of Russian movement nearby. 

In Kamenka, around 35 miles from Finnish territory, some 130 installations capable of housing 2,000 troops were set up last year.

Finland has erected a 10-foot fence, topped with barbed wire, to line a large portion of its border with Russia and stop illegal crossings.

Satellite images in the past two years have shown a significant increase in barracks, aircraft and other infrastructure at four locations near the frontier, which would be a major staging ground for a potential Russian attack on NATO. 

Slowly, Russia is re-establishing the Leningrad military district for defensive capabilities – likely in hopes of using it for an offensive if they have the ability to do so in the future.

Russia has been beefing up its military presence after Sweden and Finland joined NATO years ago in response to Russian threats made following its invasion of Ukraine.

Finland’s membership extended NATO’s border with Russia by more than 800 miles. Finland has also moved to strengthen its defences, and is currently setting up a new NATO forward command centre in Lapland.

Finland warned that Russia has already been attacking it with ‘hybrid war’ tactics such as massive cyberattacks and ‘weaponised’ mass migration.

The Finnish government previously closed the eastern border, after accusing the Kremlin of helping around 1,300 people from Syria, Iraq and Yemen cross over it in 2023.

Russia has denied the allegations, while Putin has dismissed claims he could attack Finland as ‘total nonsense’.

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