HSF Blog

Janne Kuusela, Director General of the Defence Policy Department at the Finnish Ministry of Defence  – Russia’s attack in Ukraine has serious long-term consequences.  The whole of Europe will face a more uncertain future – and this applies to the Baltic Sea Region and the High North as well. One of the many ramifications from…

Kai Sauer, Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Security Policy at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland – For many Finnish diplomats, the beginning of August means “back to school”. Summer is officially over. Goodbye lakeside, smoke sauna and mosquitoes. This is something that our EU membership did not completely alter: Finns still prefer…

Mika Aaltola, Director of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA) – We are living through a time which provides a unique setting for organising Finland’s first international security conference, the Helsinki Security Forum, at the topical intersection of the Arctic, the Baltic Sea, and the Eastern and Northern edge of Europe. It is an…