Estonia will close nighttime traffic at the southern road border crossings for three months starting 24 February

Military & Paramilitary OperationsConventional Military PressureTroop movements near borders

Defense

Summary

Estonia will close nighttime traffic at the Southern Luhamaa and Koidula road border crossings on the Estonian-Russian border for three months starting 24 February 2026, to enhance border security amid disruptions from Russia.

Starting 24 February 2026, Estonia will close nighttime traffic at southern road border crossings Luhamaa and Koidula on the Estonian-Russian border for a period of three months to better allocate border protection resources in response to disruptive actions originating from Russia. The border crossings will remain open for 12 hours during the day. Prime Minister Kristen Michal emphasized the necessity due to irrational and ongoing Russian behavior at the border. Interior Minister Igor Taro pointed out that this measure allows police and border guards to focus efforts where most needed and is a logical step given decreased cross-border traffic. In 2025, 239,542 people crossed at Luhamaa and 213,910 at Koidula, with significant portions being EU citizens and third-country nationals, including Russians. The situation will be reassessed after three months based on security needs.

Evidence

"Due to border incidents originating from Russia, the government today made a preliminary decision to close nighttime traffic at the Southern Luhamaa and Koidula road border crossing points on the Estonian-Russian border for three months."
"Closing the border crossings at night will allow more resources to be directed to border protection."
"As Russia’s behavior at the border is at times irrational, we need to free up resources to guard the border. For three months, starting on 24 February, we will reduce the opening hours of the border crossings and close them at night in response to the need to keep a closer watch on the border elsewhere," Prime Minister Kristen Michal said.
"By cutting nighttime working hours at the border crossings, we can make better use of our officers where they are most needed," Interior Minister Igor Taro said.
"Compared to 2018, the number of border crossings has decreased by approximately fivefold," Taro said.
"The highest traffic was recorded at the Narva border crossing (626,470 crossings), followed by Luhamaa (239,542) and Koidula (213,910)."

Classification

Confidence: High

The article describes Estonia's defensive measure to close nighttime traffic at strategic border crossings in response to ongoing Russian disruptive actions at the border, representing a defense preparation activity aimed at reallocating resources to strengthen border security. No direct hostile aggressor action by Estonia is described; rather, Estonia responds defensively to Russia's border provocations.

Source URL

https://www.vm.ee/en/news/estonia-will-close-nighttime-traffic-southern-road-border-crossings-three-months-starting-24

Open source

Source reliability

Info credibility

Event time

Feb 24, 2026 01:00 UTC

End time

May 24, 2026 02:00 UTC

Event time confidence

unknown

Location

Southern Luhamaa and Koidula road border crossings, Estonian–Russian border

Primary actor

Russia

Country

Estonia

Countries

Estonia