Finland’s parliament votes yes to NATO

HELSINKI, Might 17 (Reuters) - Finland's parliament on Tuesday overwhelmingly authorised a proposal to apply for membership of the NATO military alliance in a historic policy shift prompted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

President Sauli Niinisto and the government determined officially on Sunday that Finland would apply for membership however the choice was pending parliament's approval.

Of the 200 lawmakers, 188 voted in favour and eight towards the application, Speaker Matti Vanhanen said.

Register

Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said the decision was no cause to celebrate because "there is battle in Europe".

"Finland's membership in NATO won't change our primary thinking that we'll all the time seek peaceable options and we're a peace-loving nation that will in the beginning search diplomatic options to each battle," he stated through the debate.

Opponents to the applying included some lawmakers from the Left Alliance, a part of Finland's five-party coalition, amongst them Markus Mustajarvi who challenged the decision with a counter proposal leading to it being put to the vote.

"Our border would grow to be the border between the military alliance and Russia. New tensions would not be a danger only during the software process but rather a new and everlasting condition of our foreign and safety coverage," he said.

Early on Tuesday, the foreign affairs committee determined to hitch the state management in proposing to parliament that the Nordic nation ought to apply for membership.

"Having heard a really massive variety of specialists and having received the opinions of 10 (parliamentary) committees, the international affairs committee agrees with the federal government that Finland ought to apply for membership in NATO. This determination is unanimous," chairman Jussi Halla-aho informed reporters.

Register

Reporting by Anne Kauranen; Modifying by Robert Birsel and Alison Williams

Our Requirements: The Thomson Reuters Belief Ideas.