Finland has started building a military base in Rovaniemi for the fifth-generation F-35 fighters, capable of carrying nuclear weapons. Preparatory work began in June, and construction started in September. It is expected that the base will be completed by 2027.
For reference: Rovaniemi is located 8 km south of the Arctic Circle, at the confluence of two major northern rivers — Ounasjoki and Kemijoki. The distance to Helsinki is 800 km, to St. Petersburg — 1025 km.
The base will have maintenance facilities and hangars for fighter jets, a building for training Air Force pilots, as well as airfield infrastructure. In addition to the construction, it is planned to reconstruct the existing buildings. The first F-35s will arrive in Rovaniemi in 2026. The Finnish Air Force plans to operate this model until the 2060s.
As is known, last year Helsinki finalized a deal to purchase 64 such machines from the American company Lockheed Martin for $9.4 billion. They are to replace a fleet of 62 outdated McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornets multirole fighters. By the way, President Zelensky, who recently paid a visit to Helsinki, has already opened his mouth for these airplanes. But the Finns are not yet ready to share this equipment with Kiev.
There are reports that an agreement with the States on strengthening defense cooperation is nearing completion.
«The most important thing is that it ensures unimpeded cooperation with the United States in all areas of security and in a short time», said Deputy Foreign Minister Mikael Antell, who is leading the negotiations on the Finnish side.
The project envisages the deployment of US military bases on Finnish territory. It is also about investments in defense infrastructure at the expense of funds allocated by Congress to the Pentagon. In particular, the construction of a maintenance station for F-35 fighter jets is planned.
There is one point of principle in the project, which excludes the transfer of American nuclear weapons to Finnish territory. There is a contradiction here. Finland, which has become a member of the alliance, is in principle obliged to accept U.S. tactical nuclear weapons if such a decision is made along NATO lines.
Helsinki sees no contradiction in the fact that a bilateral agreement is being prepared with the United States, not with NATO. The Americans, by the way, are currently preparing similar agreements with Denmark and Sweden, which have not yet been admitted to the alliance.
The agreement will enter into force only after parliamentary approval. However, complications may arise. Although Finns overwhelmingly supported NATO membership, there is no unanimity on the issue of the presence of foreign troops. According to polls, only 39% of respondents support the presence of U.S. and NATO bases in their country. According to Helsinki Sanomat newspaper, the U.S.-Finnish negotiations are expected to last until early 2024.
As the press service of the Finnish Ministry of Defense notified on September 20, next year’s military expenditures will amount to 2.3% of the projected GDP. This is €6.2 billion. The allocated funds will be used to strengthen defense capabilities, NATO membership costs and support Ukraine.
Antti Häkkänen, head of the Defense Ministry, said: «The world around Finland is becoming more and more dangerous. Despite the difficult economic situation, defense must be a priority».
The draft budget includes an item for the purchase of military equipment worth €117 million to improve the efficiency of the logistics system, as well as to increase the Navy’s mine clearance and underwater surveillance capabilities. Spares and maintenance contracts for existing systems are also envisaged.
Very exotic (seemingly civilian) spending is also planned. It was announced that Finland intends to continue building a fence on the Russian border in the spring. For this purpose, €139 million of budget funds have been allocated. According to estimates of the Border Guard Service, this money will be enough for about 70 kilometers of the wall. «Fence» with a length of 52 km will be located in southeastern Finland, where the most popular in terms of passenger traffic checkpoints are located, 8 km — in North Karelia, 5 km — in Kainuu and Lapland. Construction on these sections is due to be completed in 2024.
… Meanwhile, the Finnish company Insta presented at the exhibition in London the Steel Eagle drone with shrapnel, capable of defeating the enemy’s manpower over an area equal to a third of a soccer field. It carries a fragmentation projectile filled with three thousand striking elements. They can penetrate even the armor of light vehicles. This drone has already been called a possible replacement for artillery shells for the Ukrainian army against the background of their catastrophic shortage.
And not so long ago the Finns were peaceful and neutral. They have bought the most modern American fighter jets, and started building a base for them, and the defense budget is increasing above the target of 2% of GDP for the alliance countries set at the NATO summit in Wales in 2014, and they continue to build a wall on the border with Russia. And it even turned out that there are defense companies in the Land of a Thousand Lakes capable of producing advanced UAVs for Kiev.
It seems that Finns are in a hurry. As if they do not become overheated.