#keskusta

minä, kahvihuoneeseen roskiksista rakentamani barrikaadin takaa: "sitä saavat sitten muut spekuloida. minä vaan teen täällä töitäni."

Chairpersons of parliamentary groups in the Finnish parliament hold very different opinions on Finland's possible membership of NATO, Ilta-Sanomat reports. All group chairpersons responded to the daily's NATO survey. Only the National Coalition Party and the Swedish People's Party are unreservedly in favour of membership, while the Centre Party and the Left Alliance are firmly against. The Social Democratic Party supports the current security policy, which defines Finland as “militarily non-aligned.” The Finns Party wants to retain the so-called "NATO option," while the Greens are updating their position ahead of their party conference in spring 2022. The chairperson of the Christian Democrats says Finland should “seriously consider” NATO membership, while the one-member Movement Now is opposed to membership at this moment.

Finnish Centre Party leader, Finance Minister Annika Saarikko, has come under harsh criticism from Harriet Lonka, member of the party's board. In an opinion article published in the Centre Party's newspaper, Suomenmaa, Lonka said Saarikko's recent statement on Finnish security policy was a lamentable attempt to silence debate on Finland's possible membership of NATO. She said Saarikko used her authority to deplore the fact that potential NATO membership was now being discussed. "Many of us think that the current situation calls for such a debate, and it is more than unfortunate that Saarikko cultivates half-truths and spreads imaginary ideas," Lonka writes. "It is not wise to reduce such a key security and defence policy issue – strengthening our military defence capabilities, possibly together with allies, – to inter-party squabbling," she states. Saarikko's idea that "NATO membership would somehow be an alternative to Finland's current national defence, based on universal conscription and a large military reserve, is wrong," Lonka insists. Moreover, NATO membership is not an alternative to taking part in developing common EU defence policy, she adds. "Finland is a small and valiant nation worthy of all our love and loyalty; it would be no less so as a member of NATO," Lonka concludes.

Finnish Centre Party MP Mikko Kärnä announced that he has changed his mind on Finland's possible NATO membership and said it was now time to join the defence alliance, Maaseudun Tulevaisuus reports. Earlier, party chairwoman Annika Saarikko stated that her party opposed NATO membership. Kärnä tweeted that Finland should exercise its so-called "NATO option" in view of the events in Ukraine. The MP said he had not favoured membership before because of a fear that Finland could end up in a "limbo" with no security guarantees while facing an unpredictable Russia. However, Kärnä said he now saw that Finland could apply for membership without fear and with sufficient international support to preclude any hostile influence operations during the accession process.