A ship the size of two and a half football fields heads for Hanko. The joint military exercise between the United States and Finland starts on Wednesday and lasts for a good week.
The USS Kearsarge, the largest US amphibious assault ship, has left Helsinki today, Monday.
The naval support vessel is 257 meters long and carries a total of 2,000 US Marines and Navy personnel.
– Never before has such a large warship moved in the Finnish archipelago, ‘s reporter Mika Hentunen says from the deck of the ship.
Many Finns visited the Hernesaari harbor in Helsinki over the weekend to admire the handsome ship. However, the public was not allowed on board.
The actual military exercise between the United States and Finland will start on Wednesday, and it is scheduled to last more than a week, until next Thursday.
– For example, the fact that it includes American helicopters is new for the Finnish Navy, says Hentunen.
Formerly Minister of Defense Antti Kaikkonen told that the visit of a large landing craft and the joint military exercise are a significant demonstration of support for Finland from the United States.
The US Senate approved Finland’s and Sweden’s NATO membership applications last week.