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Finland
Nuclear-weapon endorser
Has not yet joined the TPNW
Status
Finland has not yet signed or ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).
National position
In 2022, after applying for membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), Finland for the first time voted against an annual UN General Assembly resolution that welcomes the adoption of the TPNW and calls upon all states to sign, ratify, or accede to it “at the earliest possible date”.
From 2018 to 2021, it abstained from voting on the resolution.
Finland was admitted as a NATO member in April 2023. It said in a letter of intent to NATO in July 2022 that it accepted “NATO’s approach to security and defence, including the essential role of nuclear weapons” and was “willing to commit forces and capabilities for the full range of alliance missions”.
In May 2022, the foreign affairs committee of the Finnish parliament indicated that, as a NATO member, Finland would retain “its high profile in matters of disarmament, including nuclear disarmament, without questioning the role of NATO’s nuclear deterrence”.
The Finnish president, Sauli Niinistö, ruled out any possibility of stationing nuclear weapons in Finland as part of its NATO membership. “Finland has no intention of allowing nuclear weapons to be located on its territory,” he said. “There are no indications that any NATO nation is offering nuclear arms to Finland.”
Meetings of states parties
Finland attended as an observer the first meeting of states parties to the TPNW, held in Vienna in June 2022, consistent with the commitment of the then-prime minister, Sanna Marin, to “participate in the dialogue concerning the [TPNW]”.
Political developments
The Social Democratic Party, the Green League, and the Left Alliance have expressed their support for joining the TPNW.
In February 2023, the Social Democrats said that the TPNW and Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 “complement each other”, adding: “Being involved in the process of prohibiting nuclear weapons totally, Finland also makes it clear that a sustainable future cannot be based on nuclear weapons.”
The foreign affairs committee of the Finnish parliament issued a statement in 2018 recommending that the government of Finland “continue to analyse the contents of the treaty”. It also noted that the TPNW “supports and complements” earlier treaties.
In 2021, the parliament adopted a policy “to continue analysing” the TPNW.
Erkki Tuomioja, a former Finnish foreign minister, voiced his support for the TPNW in 2020, noting that one of the reasons for Finland’s reluctance to join it to date has been “the displeasure the US would show at such a step”.
Public opinion
A public opinion poll conducted by Kantar TNS Oy in 2019 found that 84 per cent of Finns believe that their government should sign the TPNW, with 8 per cent opposed to signing and 8 per cent undecided.
TPNW negotiations
Finland did not participate in the negotiation of the TPNW at the United Nations in New York in 2017 and thus did not vote on its adoption.
In 2016, Finland abstained from voting on the UN General Assembly resolution that established the formal mandate for states to commence negotiations on “a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination”.
The president of Finland, Sauli Niinistö, receives one thousand hand-folded paper cranes from Hiroshima, Japan, as part of an ICAN initiative in 2012.
Further information
Nuclear-weapon endorser
Has not yet joined the TPNW
[HIGHLIGHTS]
Status
Finland has not yet signed or ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).
National position
In 2022, after applying for membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), Finland for the first time voted against an annual UN General Assembly resolution that welcomes the adoption of the TPNW and calls upon all states to sign, ratify, or accede to it “at the earliest possible date”.
From 2018 to 2021, it abstained from voting on the resolution.
Finland was admitted as a NATO member in April 2023. It said in a letter of intent to NATO in July 2022 that it accepted “NATO’s approach to security and defence, including the essential role of nuclear weapons” and was “willing to commit forces and capabilities for the full range of alliance missions”.
In May 2022, the foreign affairs committee of the Finnish parliament indicated that, as a NATO member, Finland would retain “its high profile in matters of disarmament, including nuclear disarmament, without questioning the role of NATO’s nuclear deterrence”.
The Finnish president, Sauli Niinistö, ruled out any possibility of stationing nuclear weapons in Finland as part of its NATO membership. “Finland has no intention of allowing nuclear weapons to be located on its territory,” he said. “There are no indications that any NATO nation is offering nuclear arms to Finland.”
Meetings of states parties
Finland attended as an observer the first meeting of states parties to the TPNW, held in Vienna in June 2022, consistent with the commitment of the then-prime minister, Sanna Marin, to “participate in the dialogue concerning the [TPNW]”.
Political developments
The Social Democratic Party, the Green League, and the Left Alliance have expressed their support for joining the TPNW.
In February 2023, the Social Democrats said that the TPNW and Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 “complement each other”, adding: “Being involved in the process of prohibiting nuclear weapons totally, Finland also makes it clear that a sustainable future cannot be based on nuclear weapons.”
The foreign affairs committee of the Finnish parliament issued a statement in 2018 recommending that the government of Finland “continue to analyse the contents of the treaty”. It also noted that the TPNW “supports and complements” earlier treaties.
In 2021, the parliament adopted a policy “to continue analysing” the TPNW.
Erkki Tuomioja, a former Finnish foreign minister, voiced his support for the TPNW in 2020, noting that one of the reasons for Finland’s reluctance to join it to date has been “the displeasure the US would show at such a step”.
Public opinion
A public opinion poll conducted by Kantar TNS Oy in 2019 found that 84 per cent of Finns believe that their government should sign the TPNW, with 8 per cent opposed to signing and 8 per cent undecided.
TPNW negotiations
Finland did not participate in the negotiation of the TPNW at the United Nations in New York in 2017 and thus did not vote on its adoption.
In 2016, Finland abstained from voting on the UN General Assembly resolution that established the formal mandate for states to commence negotiations on “a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination”.
The president of Finland, Sauli Niinistö, receives one thousand hand-folded paper cranes from Hiroshima, Japan, as part of an ICAN initiative in 2012.
Further information
[PARTNERS]
Committee of 100 in Finland
Finnish Peace Committee - Suomen Rauhanpuolustajat
Peace Union of Finland
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Technology for life
Aseistakieltäytyjäliitto ry (Union of Conscientious Objectors, Finland)
[LOCALSUPPORT]
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