The Finnish government announced plans to raise annual defense spending from $6.8 billion to $11.5 billion by 2032 as part of its efforts to counter emerging threats. That would bring Finland’s defense spending to 3.3% of gross domestic product (GDP), well above NATO’s 2% guideline and above Finland’s current spending, which is expected to be 2.4% of 2024’s GDP.
A defense report presented in December 2024 to the Eduskunta, Finland’s parliament, cited increased threats to the West against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia has “stepped towards a more open, unpredictable and protracted confrontation with the West…and will continue to pose a long-term security threat to Europe and Finland,” the report read.
“The security situation, in Finland and regionally, is difficult to predict. It could deteriorate quickly. Greater investment is needed in defense and national security to enhance our ability to counter broad-spectrum influencing, resist military pressure and fight potential large-scale wars that could drag on for years,” Finnish Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen said in a Helsinki news conference, adding that Finland’s defense capabilities will be broadly strengthened. “As a result, we will reform national defense while also bringing the major ongoing projects in our Air Force and Navy to the finish line.”
The Nordic nation joined NATO in April 2023, and this is the first defense strategy released by the country since it joined the Alliance.
Finland’s actions come as NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte urged Alliance members to agree to a spending target above the current 2% floor, noting that the Chinese Communist Party and Russia are working to increase munitions.
“To prevent war, we need to prepare for it,” he said during a meeting of allied defense chiefs. “It is time to shift to a wartime mindset.”
Strengthening ties with Japan
Finland is also strengthening defense collaboration with Japan. The two countries, both neighbors to Russia, plan a military technology and equipment transfer deal to enable closer collaboration on defense-industrial issues amid shared security concerns, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo told The Japan Times newspaper during a visit to Tokyo in December 2024.
“The deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea is a threat to both Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific security, and shows how the two are interlinked,” Orpo said. “With North Korean soldiers fighting on European soil, it is quite evident that the security of one region can no longer be understood fully without the other.”
The agreement aims to leverage the countries’ high-tech knowledge in building a framework for defense research, development and production cooperation. Potential technology sharing could include 5G communications, space and radar technologies, underwater systems, and intelligence and surveillance products.
“Sharing and comparing analyses is important,” Orpo said. “For Finland, it is clear that Russia presents a long-term threat to European and global security.”