The Finnish Parliament overwhelmingly approved a proposal to apply for membership in the NATO military alliance, in a historic policy change brought about by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
President Sauli Niinisto and the government officially announced on Sunday that Finland would apply for membership, but the decision was pending parliamentary approval.
Parliament Speaker Matti Vanhanen said that 188 out of 200 deputies voted in favor of the application and eight voted against it.
Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said there was no reason to celebrate the decision because “there is war in Europe”.
“Finland’s membership in NATO will not change our fundamental belief that we will always seek peaceful solutions, that we are a peace-loving nation, and that we will seek, above all, diplomatic solutions to every conflict,” Haavisto said.
Among those who oppose Finland’s application for NATO membership are some lawmakers from the Left Alliance, which is part of Finland’s five-party coalition. One of these MPs, Markus Mustajarvi, opposed the resolution with a proposal and had it put to a vote.
“Our border will become a border between the military alliance and Russia. New tensions will not only be a risk in the application process, but a new and permanent condition of our foreign and security policy,” said Mustajarvi.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Foreign Affairs Commission showed that Finland, a northern European country, should apply for membership to the parliamentary agenda, showing that it agreed with the state administration’s decision.
Commission President Jussi Halla-aho said: “After listening to many experts and receiving the views of 10 committees in the parliament, the Foreign Affairs Committee agrees with the government that Finland should apply for NATO membership. This decision was taken unanimously.”