In the European Union's northernmost new member Estonia, border guards say they are geared up and ready to police the bloc's bleak new frontier with Russia from May 1

"Of course the EU means also more work for us, but we are well aware of the problems facing us and ready to meet them," Harry Hein, the director of the Estonian borderguard told AFP. "Our border meets the EU requirements and we have done quite well so far. So I don't see a reason why should we fail in the future," he said. After Estonia joins the EU with nine other mainly ex-communist countries on May 1, its 461-kilometre (286-mile) border with Russia will become an EU border, with the Baltic country taking on responsibility for keeping out illegal immigrants and criminals. While much of the bleak borderland is inhospitable territory, some of it is a potential playground for people seeking to cross the border illegally. So the EU has thrown in millions of euros to train Estonian border guards and buy equipment, laying on sophisticated cameras with night vision, radars, machines for detecting false documents, speed boats, snowmobiles and hovercraft. The eastern border crossing at Narva on the main road from Tallinn to Saint Petersburg is a particular focus of concern, with aspiring illegal immigrants having to cross just the 50 metres (yards) of river separating Russia from Estonia.