Finnish Defense Minister Kaikkonen Spoke with Türkiye on NATO and Baltic Security

Kaikkonen made a statement to the AA correspondent regarding Finland's NATO membership, relations with Turkey, security dynamics on the 1300-kilometer land border with Russia, developments in the Baltic Sea, hybrid threats and defense industry cooperation with Turkey.

Pointing out that Türkiye is a country with strong military capabilities and an important defense industry, Kaikkonen stated that Ankara is an important ally with a unique strategic position between Europe, the Black Sea and the Middle East.

Kaikkonen emphasized that the Defense Industry Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding signed between Turkey and his country will contribute to the positive development of relations and said, "As NATO allies, Finland and Turkey are in a very suitable position to further deepen their defense cooperation." he said.

BALTIC SENTRY INITIATIVE

Kaikkonen noted that NATO launched the "Baltic Sentry" initiative, which increases military presence and surveillance in order to protect the critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea, and that Finland has proven that it can act quickly in the face of a possible incident.

Stating that they are prepared for different scenarios in the Baltic Sea, Kaikkonen pointed out that tensions are rising in the region.

Kaikkonen stated that the deterrence effect of Finland's defense has increased even more after joining NATO, and stated that if military force is used against Finland, the country will defend itself with strong national defense forces and the support of the Alliance, within the framework of pre-planned and practiced arrangements.

Referring to the measures taken against the instrumentalization of irregular migration, Kaikkonen underlined that the Border Security Law, which was adopted by the parliament in July 2024 and whose validity was extended until December 31, 2026, can restrict applications for international protection and aims to counter the attempts of a foreign state to establish influence over Finland by exploiting people.

EUROPE'S DEFENSE DEFICIT

Referring to Europe's defense industry production, Kaikkonen said that production is not yet at the level it should be; He stated that the war in Ukraine revealed the deficiencies in ammunition, air defense, unmanned aerial vehicles, missiles and industrial capacity, and that European allies should strengthen their defense capabilities.

Kaikkonen pointed out that within the scope of the military reform initiated by Russia, the troops in the Leningrad Military Region operating in the direction of Finland are expected to be reinforced in the next 2-4 years, depending on the course of the war in Ukraine, and evaluated that the strength of the Russian troops stationed in the immediate vicinity of Finland is likely to be increased from 30 thousand to approximately 80 thousand.

Kaikkonen also stated that they do not expect the military force in the border region to increase significantly as long as the war in Ukraine continues.

Talking about Russia's possible future relations with Northern Europe and NATO, Kaikkonen noted that the course of relations will depend on Russia's attitude to comply with international law and agreements, that at some point political dialogue will need to begin between Europe and Russia, and that it is vital for Europe to act in unity.