Excerpts from the History of the Ministry of Defence The building of the Ministry of Defence of Finland in the year 1983. Photo: Helsinki City Museum / Lauri Putkonen With the decree issued on 14 June 1918, the War Department was established in th...

Mission statement of the Ministry of Defence The Ministry of Defence is in charge of the Finnish defence administration which is tasked with keeping Finland safe. Finland is a militarily allied country that develops its own defence capability as p...

Special Adviser Ilmari Uljas 23.6.2022 9.58 Blog 1. Who are you? My name is Ilmari Uljas and I work in the Defence Cooperation Unit of the Defence Policy Department at the Ministry of Defence. I act as the Ministry’s EU Coordinator and together wi...

Return to page Areas of expertise Conscription system and military training The Finnish Defence Forces trains those liable for military service for homeland defence tasks. This training is called the conscript service. All 18–65-year-old Finnish m...

Return to page International defence cooperation Defence cooperation between Finland and Sweden Sweden has a strong position as Finland’s close bilateral partner in defence cooperation. The cooperation builds on a long historical bond, shared valu...

9.6.2026 | Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen held a speech at the meeting of the Council of Europe’s Committee on Social Inclusion and Human Dignity in Kouvola on 9 June 2026.

9.6.2026 | Puolustusministeri Antti Häkkänen piti englanninkielisen puheen Euroopan neuvoston kunta- ja aluehallintokongressin Social Inclusion -komitean kokouksessa Kouvolassa 9.6.2026.

Return to page Areas of expertise Finland’s membership in NATO Finland’s security environment was fundamentally altered when Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Based on a reassessment of the security policy situation, Finlan...

27.5.2026 | Folk & Sikkerhed The Kingdom of Denmark – Speech to the Nordic Folk & Sikkerheds annual conference in Bergen, Norway on the 19th May 2026. My name is Kaj Kleist, and as Chairman of Folk & Sikkerhed Greenland, it is both an honor and a privilege to...

21.1.2026 | Total Defense, Interdependency and Vulnerability in Modern Societies Per Brekke DSB Have overview of risks and vulnerability in society and take initiatives to prevent and protect health, the environment and vital societal functions… Societal Safe...

21.1.2026 | Universal Conscription in Norway By Colonel Odd Inge Botillen Defence Staff Norway Content • Historical backdrop • Recent developments • Current situation • Conclusion Defence Staff Norway Historical backdrop  The Norwegian conscription system of...

21.1.2026 | NORDEFCO Annual Report 2023 Contents Foreword 3 Nordic Defence Cooperation at the policy level 4 Military Coordination Committee activities 9 Denmark’s chairmanship of NORDEFCO 2024 13 Sweden held the NORDEFCO chairmanship in 2023 and this report ...

21.1.2026 | Prime Minister’s Office: Publications 18/2004 PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE Finnish Security and Defence Policy 2004 Government report 6/2004 VNS 6/2004 vp Government report 6/2004 Finnish Security and Defence Policy 2004 Prime Minister's Office: Public...

21.1.2026 | Distribution and sale: Helsinki University Print Bookstore http://kirjakauppa.yliopistopaino.fi / [email protected] P.O. Box 4 (Vuorikatu 3 A) FI-00014 HELSINKI UNIVERSITY, FINLAND Tel +358 9 7010 2363 or 7010 2366 Fax +358 9 7010 2374 ISBN ...

27.5.2026 | 1 1 Advisory Board for Defence Information (ABDI) ANNUAL REPORT 2025 Approved by the Work Branch on 8 May 2026 GENERAL INFORMATION The Advisory Board for Defence Information (ABDI) acts as a parliamentary forum that organises dialogue on security ...

10.2.2026 | Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen will attend the meeting of EU defence ministers and the meeting of NATO defence ministers, as well as the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group and the defence ministers’ meeting of the Nordic Defence Cooperation. After these meetings in Brussels, Minister Häkkänen will continue to the Munich Security Conference.

10.1.2026 | Finland’s withdrawal from the Ottawa Anti-Personnel Landmines Convention will take effect on 10 January. Finland remains committed to the humanitarian objectives of the Ottawa Convention.

21.1.2026 | Postiosoite Käyntiosoite Puhelin s-posti, internet Postadress Besöksadress Telefon e-post, internet Postal Address Office Telephone e-mail, internet MATINE/Puolustusministeriö Eteläinen Makasiinikatu 8 A Vaihde 295 160 01 [email protected] PL 31 00...

21.1.2026 | Postiosoite Käyntiosoite Sähköposti WWW-sivut MATINE Puolustusministeriö, PL 31 00131 HELSINKI Eteläinen Makasiinikatu 8, 00130 HELSINKI [email protected] www.defmin.fi/matine Puhelinvaihde Pääsihteeri Suunnittelusihteeri Toimistosihteeri 0295 1600...

21.1.2026 | Government’s Defence Report Prime Minister’s Office Publications 7/2017 SNELLMANNINKATU 1, HELSINKI PO BOX 23, 00023 GOVERNMENT, FINLAND Tel. +358 295 16001 vnk.fi/english [email protected] ISBN: 978-952-287-374-3 PDF ISBN: 978-952-287-373-6 printed ISS...