Finland considers nuclear cooperation in draft report

Finland is considering new forms of cooperation related to nuclear weapons in an updated foreign and security policy report.

Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said he discussed the update with parliamentary party leaders Friday, adding that the report will be presented to parliament next week.

According to the draft obtained by Finnish daily Ilta-Sanomat, the government aims to remove legal restrictions on nuclear weapons while maintaining a declaration that nuclear weapons would not be stationed in Finland in peacetime.

It says NATO's deterrence includes conventional forces, missile defense, and nuclear weapons, and that its nuclear deterrence is primarily based on US nuclear weapons deployed in Europe.

It adds that this is reinforced by the UK and France's independent nuclear forces, and that NATO remains a nuclear alliance as long as nuclear weapons exist.

The draft also states that Finland is fully committed to NATO's collective defense and participates in nuclear deterrence work.

It adds that Finland will not become a nuclear-weapon state under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and will maintain close dialogue with allies.

It says Finland is ready to consider new forms of cooperation and will define its position on nuclear deterrence independently.

In early March, Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen presented a government proposal to amend legislation to remove the absolute ban on nuclear weapons from Finnish law.

Under the proposal, importing nuclear weapons into Finland could be allowed if linked to military defense, NATO's collective defense, or defense cooperation, according to IS.

The opposition reportedly criticized the proposal, arguing it was not prepared through a parliamentary process involving all parties, as is customary in foreign and security policy matters.