In Finland current legislation bans the import, manufacture, possession and detonation of nuclear weapons - even in the case of war. Three years after joining Nato, Finland’s government has now announced that the ban will be lifted in order to “take full advantage of Nato’s deterrence and collective defence”, according to Defence Minister Antti Häkkänen. For the moment, however, Helsinki has no plans to host atomic weapons.
Not a threat but a deterrent
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Nuclear weapons are about defence, Iltalehti argues (Finland):
“Basically this is about creating a deterrent. And this is something we emphasised again and again long before joining Nato. The point is not to threaten or intimidate Russia, but to use every possible defensive means and precautions to create an insurmountable threshold for an invasion of Finland. This includes updating our legislation in matters of nuclear weapons. The nuclear component of Nato is the highest level of deterrent, and is something that all nuclear powers, Russia included, understand.”
We shouldn’t play into the Kremlin’s hands
Finnish political parties should pull together, Lapin Kansa urges (Finland):
“The largest parties in the Finnish parliament have traditionally been united on the basic principles of national foreign and security policy. ... We need to maintain this unified front because it’s our best weapon against the threat from the east. Russia is already delighted about our disagreement and will undoubtedly exploit this in its propaganda. Our political decision-makers must get a grip on themselves immediately. You might be able to win votes with unfounded disaster scenarios, but such rhetorical games have nothing to do with patriotism. Fear-mongering with Finland as an atomic power only plays into the hands of the Kremlin.”
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