Official press releases, news and speeches that the minister has held are located in this section. The Ministry of Defence publishes all of its press releases and news in Finnish and Swedish and many of them in English, too.
Press Releases
Finland and Iceland to enhance their defence cooperation
Finland’s Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen and Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir signed a Memorandum of Understanding on defence cooperation on Tuesday 7 October 2025 in connection with the Icelandic state visit to Finland.
The objective of the Finnish–Icelandic defence cooperation is to strengthen the countries’ defence and regional security and to bolster NATO’s deterrence and defence.
This closer bilateral cooperation will also promote more broadly the objectives of the Nordic Defence Cooperation (NORDEFCO). Finland has now signed memorandums of understanding on defence cooperation with all the Nordic countries.
Finland’s cooperation with Iceland and the other Nordic countries will also intensify because the countries are all part of the same NATO joint force command.
“Iceland is an important ally for Finland. We both have Arctic expertise that can benefit the Alliance as a whole. Finland has already participated in the NATO Icelandic Air Policing mission, and our closer bilateral and multilateral cooperation will strengthen the Alliance’s deterrence and defence,” Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen said.
The defence cooperation seeks to increase defence-related dialogue, exchange of information and expertise and to identify new areas of cooperation in the field of capabilities, technologies and defence solutions.
Memorandum of Understanding between Finland and Iceland on Defence Cooperation
Inquiries: Tiina Benredjem, Senior Specialist, Ministry of Defence, tel. +358 295 140 009. Requests for interviews with Minister Häkkänen: Dani Niskanen, Special Adviser, tel. +358 415 444 967.