[…] One of the lessons of the pandemic is that the Finnish Government, together with the President, and the Parliament are capable to act decisively, if needed. In the spring, we activated parts of the Emergency Powers Act. It was for the first time after the Second World War that the state of emergency was declared in Finland.
Despite the increasingly tense international situation, Finland is not under any immediate military threat. Nonetheless, we must prepare for the use or the threat of use of military force against us.
Finland is a militarily non-aligned state which maintains a credible national defence capability. By maintaining our defence capability, we prevent the use of military force against Finland, show readiness to respond to the use or the threat of use of military force, and the capacity to repel any attacks against our country. […]
Defence policy cooperation strengthens our national defence capability. The Nordic cooperation in general, and especially in defence matters, remains extremely important. It also enjoys strong public and political support in Finland.
As our new Foreign and Security Policy Report states, Sweden is the most important bilateral partner for Finland. Our countries share the same assessment of how our operating environment is developing.
We continue to deepen our defence cooperation with Sweden without any predetermined limitations.
The aim of the Finnish-Swedish defence cooperation is to be ready for joint action and operations in peace, crisis and war, if such political decisions are made. […]
One recent example of our defence cooperation is the Trilateral Statement of Intent between Finland, Sweden and Norway on enhanced operational cooperation. It is another important tool in fulfilling the common Nordic ambition to maintain peace and stability in our region.
The Statement of Intent is a natural step forward in our defence co-operation with Sweden and Norway. Our countries share common interests, long traditions for cooperation and high-level of mutual trust and confidence. Läs anförandet