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Interview: Finland's foreign policy line to show more cohesion under new gov't: expert

Xinhua, April 21, 2015 Adjust font size:

Finland will have a new government with more cohesion and uniformity in the management of foreign policy, Timo Soikkanen, a professor emeritus in political history at the University of Turku said on Monday.

The Center Party's victory in the parliamentary election on Sunday means the party leader Juha Sipila will start negotiations to form a new coalition government in the coming weeks.

"Whatever the actual composition of the government, it will be led by a new centrist prime minister and the foreign policy line will be closer to (Finnish) President Sauli Niinisto", Soikkanen said in an interview with Xinhua.

The image of Finland's foreign policy was somewhat blurred particularly last summer when incumbent Prime Minister Alexander Stubb gave public statements in favour of joining NATO. He later followed the line that a NATO membership was not an urgent matter but a possible option in the future.

Finnish President Sauli Niinisto has repeatedly warned against damaging the relationship with Russia. Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja has been seen by observers as close to the line pursued by Niinisto.

The alleged divisions at the highest level in Finnish government were further revealed just before the election, as leaked information showed the ruling National Coalition Party had tried to prevent social democrat Tuomioja from making public policy statements.

The secret effort was apparently made during the time when previous Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen was still in office. His key assistants tried to shift the role of the Foreign Minister to the Prime Minister.

The would-be next Prime Minister Juha Sipila recently said the foreign policy line of his new government would reflect that of Juho Kusti Paasikivi, who was Finnish President in 1946-1956. The policy line developed during those years reflected the idea that the USSR should not feel threatened from the direction of Finland.

Sipila has underlined that Finland and Sweden are two non-aligned states in northern Europe. In the interview with Xinhua, professor Soikkanen pondered over the credibility of the non-aligned status of Finland.

"The problem is that despite the fact that Finland is not a NATO member, Russia seems to regard Finland as a NATO country", he said. "Perhaps because much of Finnish weaponry is NATO-compatible."

Former Foreign Minister Paavo Vayrynen, a centrist, has expressed his interest in taking a position in the new government again. He got a seat in the Parliament in the weekend elections.

Vayrynen was Foreign Minister in 1980s and early 1990s. He has repeatedly criticized the policies of the outgoing government towards Russia during the Ukraine crisis.

Professor Soikkanen was the writer of the official book on the history of Finnish Foreign Ministry and the foreign affairs. Endit