2023
Minister of Defence Häkkänen to attend NATO defence minister meeting
Finland’s Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen will attend a meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence at NATO Headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday 11 October and Thursday 12 October. Among the topics on the agenda will be the strengthening of deterrence and defence, NATO’s operations and support for Ukraine.
Wednesday marks the first meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council in Defence Ministers’ Session. The Council was launched at the Vilnius Summit to advance political dialogue and Ukraine’s aspirations for membership in NATO, among other objectives. The Council will discuss Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and NATO’s support for Ukraine.
“In a world growing increasingly unstable and dangerous, meetings among Allies and close partners become ever more important,” says Minister of Defence Häkkänen.
On the second day of the meeting, the ministers will exchange views on strengthening NATO’s deterrence and defence. The ministers will also discuss NATO’s operations. The defence ministers of the Allies and Sweden will exchange views on NATO’s operations with Charles Fries, Deputy Secretary General for Peace, Security and Defence of the European External Action Service.
“It is of paramount importance for the security of our Alliance that we finalise Sweden’s accession to NATO,” says Minister Häkkänen.
Minister’s other meetings in Brussels on 11–12 October
Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen will attend a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at NATO Headquarters on Wednesday 11 October. On Thursday 12 October, he will attend defence ministers’ meetings of the Northern Group and the German-led Framework Nation Concept.
The Ukraine Defence Contact Group will discuss Ukraine’s situation and the efforts to support Ukraine. The group is an alliance of more than 40 countries that discuss, under the leadership of the United States, deliveries of military aid to Ukraine.
The defence ministers of the Northern Group will discuss regional security and protection of critical national infrastructure. The Northern Group includes the Nordic countries and Baltic States and Germany, Poland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
At the meeting of the German-led Framework Nation Concept (FNC), defence ministers will discuss the FNC’s annual report and exchange views on the future of the FNC. The FNC’s goal is to develop multinational European capabilities and build formations for the needs of crisis management, for example.
In Brussels, Minister Häkkänen will also have bilateral meetings with the defence ministers of Spain, Canada, Denmark and Lithuania.
Inquiries: Sebastian Wassholm, Senior Specialist, on the meeting of NATO Defence Ministers, tel. +358 295 140 066; Janne Kuusela, Director General, on the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, tel. +358 295 140 300; Tiina Benredjem, Senior Specialist, on the meeting of the Northern Group of Defence Ministers, tel. +358 295 140 106; Tatu Mikkola, Senior Staff Officer, on the meeting of the German-led Framework Nation Concept, tel. +358 295 140 006, and Emma Virkkunen, Senior Specialist, on communications related to the meetings, tel. +358 295 140 176. Requests for interviews with the Minister of Defence: Ville Sipiläinen, Special Adviser, tel. +358 40 761 1558.