Finland lowers asylum seeker forecast to 30,000-35,000

HELSINKI (Reuters) - Finland on Wednesday lowered its estimate for the number of asylum seekers expected to arrive in the country this year to 30-35,000 from its previous estimate of 50,000. The Interior Ministry said the decrease was due to its measures to control immigration, such as opening a registration center in northern Finland for those crossing over from Sweden. So far this year, 22,000 asylum seekers have arrived in Finland, mostly from Iraq, up from 3,600 people in 2014. The Finnish government last month suspended decision-making on asylum claims by Iraqis and Somalis, saying it might tighten guidelines for granting people asylum after reassessing the security situation in both countries. (Reporting by Anna Ercanbrack; Editing by Alison Williams)