Finland investigates drone that washed up on shore

Finnish authorities said Wednesday they were investigating a "possible territorial violation," after a drone was found washed up on shore in the country's south.

The drone was found on the shore of an island in the Porvoo archipelago in the Gulf of Finland on Tuesday, less than a two-hour drive east of the capital Helsinki.

"The Finnish Border Guard and the police are investigating the incident," Minister of Defence Antti Hakkanen said in a statement.

The drone did not pose a risk to the public as it was not carrying any explosives, according to Antti Leskela, a Finnish Border Guard officer leading the investigation.

"It has been established that this device is safe," he said.

Leskela said it was "too early to assess" whether the drone originated from neighbouring Russia.

Preliminary information indicated it had been "used for surveying and mapping," according to a statement from Finland's ministry of defence.

The drone was a "fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicle" and "a few metres in length," Leskela said.

The border guard was investigating the origin of the unmanned aircraft, its possible flight path or drift to Finland, as well as other circumstances.

Leskela declined to comment further on the drone's potential purpose, saying only that the matter remained "under investigation."

He added it was "quite possible" it may have drifted to the Finnish shoreline from other parts of the Baltic Sea.

Ukraine has repeatedly attacked Russian oil ports in the Gulf of Finland in recent months, and Finland has reported several stray Ukrainian drones that have crashed on its territory this year.