Speeches
Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen's opening words at the media day of the Northern Forest 24 exercise on 29 May 2024
After the accession of Finland to NATO, the importance of the Arctic has increased. High North remains vital and critical area for Russia. Russia’s energy exports stem from the area and an important part of her nuclear deterrence operate from Kola Peninsula. Russia will secure its’ interests also in the future - possibly even more assertive way.
High North is among the most demanding environments to wage war. Only exercising and training in the area prepares the troops to operate there. Our Finnish troops have always had the requirement to be able to fight in all conditions the High North will offer. Understandably, not all allies have had this requirement. I am pleased to observe that our allies have answered our call and allocated troops for training - both in defence of Finland and the alliance.
I want to stress that the Northern Forest 24 exercise is defensive in its nature. It is not targeted against anybody or any nation. It is purely intended to enhance the defence of Finland and the North Atlantic Alliance. Every nation has the right to defend and train its defence. Any other interpretation of this exercise is erroneous and false.
I am quite impressed and assured of our troops’ capabilities. Both Finnish and allies. My sincere hope is that we will even increase the training with our allies in the future. It would be of utmost importance that as many troops as possible from our allied forces could train in these conditions in the future. I applaud and thank our friends for participating in the Northern Forest 24 exercise.