The Finnish Ministry of Defense has decided to establish a NATO command post for land forces in the city of Mikkeli, located 140 km from the Russian border, according to the official website of the ministry.
The country’s Minister of Defense, Antti Häkkänen, noted that the Finnish land forces command is already based in Mikkeli, and by combining it with the North Atlantic Alliance base, Finland will achieve "the best possible synergy between the coordination of our national defense and NATO's defense capabilities."
Under normal conditions, the base will be responsible for NATO exercises and "other peaceful actions in the area," the Finnish Ministry of Defense specified. In case of a crisis, leaders of the North Atlantic Alliance's land forces will be based at the command center. The command will consist of personnel from both allied and Finnish defense forces.
Preparation for the establishment of the NATO headquarters in Mikkeli became known in the spring. The Finnish authorities made this decision "to strengthen preventive deterrence" in light of the ongoing war in Ukraine and Russia's attempts to provoke a migration crisis at the border.
The Finnish defense minister stated that he is negotiating with several NATO countries about deploying alliance troops in Mikkeli. According to him, the goal is for these forces to be able to arrive in the republic during "crisis situations," including the "tense atmosphere at the border."
According to Yle, in addition to the base in Mikkeli, Finland may open a new NATO headquarters in Rovaniemi or Sodankylä.
In April 2023, Finland officially became the 31st member of NATO. Following the republic's accession to the military alliance, the Russian Foreign Ministry warned of increased threats of confrontation with NATO. Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested that Helsinki could face problems as a result of joining the North Atlantic Alliance.
