Another Nato facility will be set up in Finland.
The military alliance approved Finland’s bid to host a deployable communication and information system (CIS) module at a defence ministers’ meeting in Brussels.
"This is the fourth of our Nato goals to be achieved. We received approval from the allies today," Defence Minister Antti Häkkänen (NCP) said. He spoke to reporters in the Belgian capital on Thursday while Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) was meeting with other EU leaders at a castle in northeast Belgium.
Häkkänen explained that the unit will provide telecoms and IT services to manage Nato forces in Finland and other countries in the alliance. It will be one of three such Nato modules, which create mobile communication systems among other tasks.
He said that Finland had been lobbying for the deployment of such a facility for several months. It will focus on serving command and control systems in the northern Nato region.
"I am very pleased that the allies have again given their strong support to our objective in Nato. A Deployable CIS Module will strengthen Nato’s deterrence and defence throughout the High North," Häkkänen said in a press release before heading to the Munich Security Conference on Friday. President Alexander Stubb and Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen (NCP) are also taking part.
The unit is to employ 60 Finns. Its location has not yet been decided, but operations could start next year.
Nato's Northern Multi-Corps Land Component Command (MCLCC) began operations in Mikkeli, eastern Finland, last autumn. Meanwhile Finland and Sweden are jointly planning for the deployment of Nato Forward Land Forces (FLF) in Lapland.
Adlercreutz to Greenland
During the Brussels meeting, Nato announced Arctic Sentry, a plan to strengthen surveillance and presence in the Arctic regions. As part of the plan, Sweden said it would fly Gripen fighter jets over Greenland.
Finland has not yet announced whether it will participate in the new operation.
According to Häkkänen, Finland insists that any addition to Arctic defence be made based on a threat assessment. Defence resources should only be used if they truly counter the Russian threat, he said. Earlier this year, Finland sent two officers on a fact-finding mission to Greenland.
On Friday, the Finnish government announced that Education Minister Anders Adlercreutz (SPP), who is responsible for Nordic cooperation, will begin a two-day visit to Greenland on Sunday.
