Off the wire
• 1st LD Writethru: U.S. stocks rebound after heavy sell-off  • U.S., Iran to have more nuclear talks  • Chicago corn, soybeans, wheat post gains on short covering  • Commonwealth should promote development, partnership:Maltese PM  • Austrian researchers successfully eliminate psoriasis symptoms  • Parents who overvalue kids may help create little narcissists: study  • Albania's CPI increases in February 2015  • Solar impulse flyer makes first stop in Oman on global tour  • LME base metals close higher mostly on Monday  • Foreign exchange rate of euro to other currencies  
You are here: 　 Home

Finnish politicians divided over EU joint army proposal

Xinhua, March 10, 2015 Adjust font size:

Finnish politicians have different opinions about the idea of a joint EU military force proposed by Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, media reported on Monday.

Finnish President Sauli Niinisto and Defense Minister Carl Haglund expressed their support of the proposal.

Niinisto told Finnish News Agency that the European Union has been built on the basis of peace, so "it is odd" that the union does not have the means to safeguard it.

Haglund told Finnish national broadcaster Yle that Juncker's idea is interesting and worth discussing.

However, he pointed out that the joint army will not take the place of NATO, as most EU countries regard NATO as the primary alliance for defense cooperation.

On the other hand, some other Finnish politicians seem not keen on Juncker's proposal.

Timo Soini, Chairman of the Finns Party said he does not believe the EU could build a joint defense force, as the EU should be more of an economic and free trade alliance.

Erkki Tuomioja, Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs, claimed that the idea is not realistic, saying that the EU is "not capable" of developing a joint military force. He added that the proposed joint army is a long term goal but not a matter on timetable in the near future.

Juncker suggested on Sunday that the European Union needs to establish a joint army to face up to Russia and other threats coming from the rest of the world.

The proposal has been backed by Germany. Some other EU countries including France and the UK are worried that the proposed joint EU army would diminish NATO's influence over Europe. Endit