Finland is facing an intense political debate following the government's announcement of its intention to lift the legal ban on nuclear weapons, a measure that seeks to adapt national legislation to NATO's deterrence policy.
Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen explained that the current legislation, in force since the 1980s, no longer responds to the current geopolitical context or to the country's defense needs after joining NATO in 2023. According to the official, the security environment in Europe has changed significantly since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Finnish law currently prohibits the import, manufacture, possession and detonation of nuclear devices on its territory. The government proposes to amend the Nuclear Energy Act and the Criminal Code to allow nuclear weapons to be transported, supplied or possessed in Finland when related to national defense or collective defense operations within NATO
.Häkkänen noted that the reform would allow Finland to fully participate in the alliance's deterrence strategy, although he ruled out that the country plans to permanently deploy nuclear warheads on its territory.
