Russians With Bandsaws: Exiles Carve Out Carpentry Careers In Finland

Some of the thousands of Russians who have poured into Finland since the war on Ukraine was launched in 2022 are learning a new profession: carpentry. Finland is facing a shortage of qualified labor and aims to double its population of working immigrants by 2030. But the Nordic country has also targeted Russian exiles and closed its border in response to waves of people trying to escape an economy hobbled by sanctions. The JEDU training center in Kalajoki has enrolled mainly Russians. They asked that their identities be withheld while talking to RFE/RL's Current Time.