title: Informal practices and the rule of law
abstract: When the border between the Russian Federation (hereafter, Russia) and Norway and later between Russia and Finland ‘opened’ during the ‘migration crisis’ of 2015 and 2016, the so-called Arctic route through Moscow and Northern Russia emerged as another major channel to the European Union. Migrants from various Asian, African and Middle Eastern countries chose the Arctic route given its cheaper price and, significantly, since it was considered safer than the overcrowded route through the Mediterr