HS: Belarus to close Helsinki embassy

Belarus has announced its decision to close its embassy in Helsinki, Finland, effective from September 1st, according to Helsingin Sanomat. The announcement was published on Belarus's state decisions registry and signed by Prime Minister Aleksandr Turchin.

For Belarusian citizens in Finland or those needing consular assistance, the Finnish government advises them to reach out to either the Finnish embassy in Stockholm or the Daugavpils consulate in Latvia, as per Helsingin Sanomat's report.

This move comes as part of a broader strategy detailed by a Belarusian news outlet, Pozirk, which suggests that Belarus has been systematically "optimising" its embassy network. During this period, Belarus has also been establishing new consulates within Russia. The last Belarusian ambassador to Finland, Aleksei Samosuev, served from 2018 to 2024 but was not succeeded by another ambassador, indicating a decision not to appoint a new representative in Helsinki.

It's worth noting that Belarus initially set up its embassy in Finland in 2011, a move that predates Finland's establishment of a liaison office for Finland within the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Minsk, its capital, which serves as the country's representation in Belarus.