European Union sanctions against Russia could affect one in four companies in Finland doing business in Russia, according to Finnish Customs. Some 2,000 companies in Finland do business across the eastern border. A quarter of these operate in sectors targeted by sanctions, Customs said. The EU’s sanctions package targets theContinue Reading
Finland’s president Sauli Niinistö said on Tuesday that the Minsk process, which aimed to provide autonomy for some regions of Ukraine while stopping short of granting them independence, is now dead. Niinistö said that it was difficult to predict what might happen next. “The crisis is no longer a EuropeanContinue Reading
Prime Minister Kaja Kallas (Reform) has pursued a successful foreign policy course amid the current security crisis facing Ukraine, senior ERR journalists Anvar Samost and Huko Aaspõllu find. On the other hand, defense minister Kalle Laanet (Reform) has been irresponsible in stating that if Ukraine falls before Russia’s objectives, theContinue Reading
Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto (Green) has said that recent meetings between German and Russian leaders indicate that ongoing tensions in Ukraine could still be resolved through diplomatic means. The security situation in the region remains strained, with western countries expressing concern about an impending attack on Ukraine as RussiaContinue Reading
Asked in an interview on Yle TV1 on Wednesday morning why the Finnish Defence Forces (FDF) raised their level of internal security on Tuesday, Minister of Defence Antti Kaikkonen (Cen) said that, “Times are such that the Defence Forces are taking their own measures,” but denied that Finland is facingContinue Reading
KRIGSFRYKT: Norge og de andre nordiske landene må være forberedt på at ukrainere på flukt kommer hit hvis det blir krig, tror forsker Jakub M. Godzimirski. En eventuell krig kan utløse en stor flyktningkrise i Europa. Landene nærmest vil få flest flyktninger fra Ukraina: Polen, Romania og Slovakia forbereder segContinue Reading
Finland’s Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto says that there is still a chance for a diplomatic resolution to the Ukraine crisis. Finland will not send weapons to Ukraine as it faces the possibility of an invasion by Russia, says Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto (Green). Speaking on Yle TV1’s breakfast television showContinue Reading
The Baltic foreign ministers are preparing to travel to Ukraine amid Western concerns that Russia may invade its neighbor, Lithuania’s top diplomat Gabrielius Landsbergis said on Monday evening. “We have tentatively agreed with our Baltic colleagues (…) on our possible visit (to Ukraine) in the near future,” he told theContinue Reading
The chair of parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Mika Niikko (Finns), was forced to explain his comments on Twitter that appeared to contradict Finland’s foreign policy positions. He had suggested that French President Emmanuel Macron, or someone else, should state publicly that Ukraine would not join Nato. He soon deleted theContinue Reading
Sweden said it would give Ukraine 50 million Swedish crowns (US$5.4 million) over three years to support economic development, dialogue and general resilience in south and east Ukraine. The money will go into the Partnership Fund for Resilient Ukraine, launched with the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the United States. “ThisContinue Reading