MINISTER OF DEFENCE JUSSI NIINISTÖ
Minister of Defence, 29 May 2015 to present
Biography of the Minister of Defence of Finland, Jussi Niinistö
Jussi Niinistö (born in Helsinki October 27, 1970) is a politician and a military historian. Since 2011, he has been a member of the Finnish Parliament and as of May 2015 Minister of Defence of Finland.
Before entering into politics, Niinistö made a distinguished career within the field of Finnish history as well as military history. He received his M.A. in 1994 and Ph.D. in 1998, both from the University of Helsinki.
Niinistö, an adjunct professor of Finnish history at the University of Helsinki and of military history at the Finnish National Defence University, has worked on various extensive history related research projects and published several books.
Jussi Niinistö is currently a member of the parliamentary group Blue Reform. He was a member of the Finns Party Parliamentary Group 2011-2017 and vice-chairman of the party 2013-2017. Prior to becoming Minister of Defence in 2015, the parliamentary career of Niinistö includes serving as the chairman for the Defence Committee (2011–2015). Within local politics, he has been a member of the municipal council of Nurmijärvi between 2009 and 2015 and a member of Helsinki city council since 2017.
Jussi Niinistö is a reserve officer with the rank of Senior Lieutenant.
CV
Date and Place of Birth:
27 October 1970, Helsinki, Finland
Education
Doctor of Philosophy 1998 (University of Helsinki)
Archive Management Degree 1997 (National Archives)
Master of Arts 1994 (University of Helsinki)
Matriculated 1989 (Hämeenkylä Upper Secondary School, Vantaa)
Professional Career
Secretary General, The Finns Party Parliamentary Group (2005–2011)
Editor-in-Chief, Vapaussoturi magazine (2006–2011)
Group Secretary, The Finns Party Parliamentary Group (2004–2005)
Adjunct Professor in Finnish Military History, National Defence University (2004–)
Adjunct Professor in Finnish History, University of Helsinki (2004–)
Heritage Work Secretary, Heritage Foundation of Finnish Freedom War Invalids (2003–2011)
Researcher, National Archives (2003)
Executive Director, Association of Finnish Culture and Identity (1999–2000 and 2001)
Research assistant and history researcher in various projects (1995–2004)
Memberships in Parliamentary committees:
Grand Committee (Deputy Member) 2015
Administration Committee (Vice Chair) 2015
Board of the Library of Parliament (Chair) 2011 - 2015
Speaker's Council (Member) 2011 - 2015
Grand Committee (Deputy Member) 2011 - 2012
Defence Committee (Chair) 2011 - 2015
Foreign Affairs Committee (Deputy Member) 2012 - 2015
NATO Parliamentary Assembly (Member) 2011 - 2015
Forum for International Affairs (Member) 2011 - 2015
Parliamentary group:
The Blue Reform 2017 -
Member of the Government
Minister of Defence 29.05.2015 -
Military rank:
Reserve Senior Lieutenant
Publications
Several books on Finnish history
Hundreds of articles, columns and book reviews on history and society in several publications