Finland’s Minister of Defence Antti Kaikkonen and Sweden’s Minister of Defence Peter Hultqvist met today 14 March 2022 in Helsinki and took part in a scenario-based exercise. The ministers published the following joint statement:
Sweden and Finland give high priority to the continued development of our bilateral defence cooperation. We are prepared to act together in peacetime and beyond it. We have bilateral operation plans and contingency measures, enabling us to coordinate our actions in times of crisis and war.
During our meeting today we discussed the international security situation and deepening our bilateral defence cooperation.
One element of our bilateral defence cooperation is tabletop exercises. The Swedish and Finnish Defence Ministers had such an exercise on 14 March. Chiefs of Defence from Sweden and Finland, too, took part in the exercise. The exercise was based on a fictitious scenario of a conflict in the Baltic Sea Region. Its objective was to practice political decision-making and procedures for joint action.
Tabletop exercises and other similar exercises reinforce the defence capability of our countries and increase our understanding of the possibilities and potential challenges of joint military operations.
View the full statement on government.se