Finland to lift ban on nuclear weapons

An amendment is being discussed in the Finnish parliament that would repeal the existing legislative ban on deploying nuclear weapons on the country's territory. If approved, Finland would be allowed to deploy nuclear weapons only during wartime. The government claims this step would align Finland with other Scandinavian NATO members, which restrict the use of nuclear weapons to peacetime only. In turn, the amendment is seen as strengthening NATO's deterrence against Russia; however, it is still under discussion and has not yet received final approval.

Context

Finland, like all NATO member states, operates within the alliance's collective nuclear policy, under which the deployment of nuclear weapons on member territories is permitted only in the event of a military threat.