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Finland–United States relations

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Finland and the United States currently have good relations. The United States recognized Finland on May 7, 1919 after it declared independence in 1917, and officially established diplomatic relations in 1920. Due to World War II and Soviet pressure, relations were suspended between 1942 and 1945 before being raised to embassy level in 1954. Finland has been of strategic importance to the United States due to its position bordering the Soviet Union and later Russia, and after the end of the Cold War in 1991 Finland's shift to the West has led to warmer relations. There is significant trade activity, including military procurement, between the two countries.

Finland – United States relations
Map indicating locations of Finland and USA

Finland
United States
Diplomatic mission
Embassy of Finland, Washington, D.C.Embassy of the United States, Helsinki

The United States supported Finlanď's NATO membership during Finland's accession into NATO, which was finalized on 4 April 2023, and later that year, the two countries entered into a Defense Cooperation Agreement. Currently, both countries are members of the NATO and AC. The United States is Observer bureau of the BEAC and CBSS while Finland is a member of them.

History

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Postage stamp celebrating the 350th anniversary of Finnish settlements in America
 
Lauri Törni when he served in the U.S. Army Special Forces in the 1960s
 
Marcus A. Hitchcock and Pasi Jokinen in Helsinki, 2019
 
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto in Reykjavík, 2021

Diplomatic relations between the governments of Finland and the United States were established in 1920 at a legation level.[1]

During the Second World War, although the Finnish government co-operated with the Axis Powers, relations were maintained. The U.S. government resisted Soviet pressures to declare war on Finland, but on June 30, 1944, it agreed to sever diplomatic relations with the Finnish government. After Finland had withdrawn from the war and acted against German troops in early 1945, the U.S. government reopened its legation in Helsinki on March 1, 1945. On August 20, 1945, negotiations were started between the two governments on re-establishing diplomatic relations, which was done on August 31.[2]

Relations between the two countries were raised to embassy level on September 10, 1954.[citation needed]

Relations between the United States and Finland are warm. Some 270,000 U.S. citizens visit Finland annually, and about 6,000 U.S. citizens are residents there.[citation needed] The U.S. has an educational exchange program in Finland that is comparatively large for a Western European country of Finland's size. It is financed in part from a trust fund established in 1976 from Finland's final repayment of a U.S. loan made in the aftermath of World War I.[citation needed]

Finland is bordered on the east by Russia and, as one of the former Soviet Union's neighbors, has been of particular interest and importance to the U.S. both during the Cold War and in its aftermath. Before the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, longstanding U.S. policy was to support Finnish neutrality and to maintain and reinforce Finland's historic, cultural, and economic ties with the West. The U.S. has welcomed Finland's increased participation since 1991 in Western economic and political structures.[citation needed]

In 2003, Anneli Jäätteenmäki of the Centre Party won the elections after she had accused her rival, Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen, of allying neutral Finland with the United States in the Iraq War during a meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush and thus associated Finland with what many Finns considered an illegal war of aggression. Lipponen denied the claims and declared, "We support the UN and the UN Secretary-General". Jäätteenmäki resigned as prime minister after 63 days in office amid accusations that she had lied about the leak of the documents about the meeting between Bush and Lipponen. That series of events was considered scandalous and it is named Iraq leak, or Iraqgate.[3]

In 2019, Finnish Air Force and USSPACECOM signed a Memorandum of Understanding between Finland and the United States on space situational awareness cooperation in Helsinki, Finland. These agreements foster openness, predictability of space operations, and transparency for space domain awareness.

Economic and trade relations between Finland and the United States are active and were bolstered by the F-18 Hornet purchase. U.S.–Finland trade totals almost $5 billion annually. The U.S. receives about 7% of Finland's exports – mainly pulp and paper, ships, machinery, electronics, instruments, and refined petroleum products[4] – and provides about 7% of its imports – principally computers, semiconductors, aircraft, machinery. U.S. President Joe Biden approved the NATO membership of Finland and Sweden in August 2022.[5]

On December 18, 2023, the US (represented by Antony Blinken) and Finland (represented by Antti Häkkänen and Elina Valtonen) signed a Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) in Washington, D.C.[6][7]

The agreement regulates the presence of the US armed forces and their dependents on the territory of the Finland, as well as the presence and activities of US suppliers on the territory of the Finland.

The United States Ambassador to Finland is Doug Hickey[8]

President Joe Biden visited Helsinki on July 12, 2023[9] and met with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö[10] and leaders of other Nordic nations, including Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. The purpose was to celebrate[11] Finland joining the NATO.

Visits of heads of state

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Presidents Urho Kekkonen and John F. Kennedy in 1961
 
Presidents Ronald Reagan and Mauno Koivisto in The Rose Garden 1983
 
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump with President Sauli Niinistö and Jenni Haukio at the Mäntyniemi Residence in 2018
 
Presidents Joe Biden and Sauli Niinistö in press Conference at the Presidential Palace of Finland in Helsinki, Finland in July 2023
 
President of Finland Alexander Stubb meets with U.S. President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the 2024 NATO summit in Washington, D.C., 10 July 2024

During 1975–2023 six presidents of the United States have visited Finland. Of them, George H. W. Bush visited Finland twice. Basic facts of these visits are given in the table below. In some cases, the table contains only the arrival date.[12]

In addition to this, Barack Obama visited Finland during 26–27 September 2019. He gave a talk at the Nordic Business Forum.[13]

Visits of United States Presidents to Finland
No Year Date Visitor Host Reason for the visit
1. 1975 29 July Gerald Ford Urho Kekkonen Attended CSCE Summit
2. 1988 26–29 May Ronald Reagan Mauno Koivisto Stop on the way to Moscow to meet with Mikhail Gorbachev
3. 1990 8 September George H. W. Bush Mauno Koivisto Meeting with Mikhail Gorbachev in Helsinki
4. 1992 8 July George H. W. Bush Mauno Koivisto Attended CSCE Summit
5. 1997 20 March Bill Clinton Martti Ahtisaari Meeting with Boris Yeltsin in Helsinki
6. 2018 15–16 July Donald Trump Sauli Niinistö Meeting with Vladimir Putin in Helsinki
7. 2023 13–14 July Joe Biden Sauli Niinistö Meeting with Niinistö
Meeting with Nordic prime ministers


Visits of Finland Presidents to United States
No Year Date Visitor Host Reason for the visit
1. 1961 16–18 October Urho Kekkonen John F. Kennedy Meeting with John F. Kennedy
2. 1970 23–25 July Urho Kekkonen Richard Nixon Meeting with Richard Nixon
3. 1970 24 October Urho Kekkonen Richard Nixon Attended White House dinner on 25th Anniversary of the U.N
4. 1976 3–5 August Urho Kekkonen Gerald R. Ford Meeting with Gerald R. Ford
5. 1983 24–27 September Mauno Koivisto Ronald Reagan Meeting with Ronald Reagan
6. 1991 6–8 May Mauno Kivisto George H. W. Bush Meeting with George H. W. Bush
7. 1994 8–10 November Martti Ahtisaari Bill Clinton Meeting with Bill Clinton
8. 1999 16–17 December Martti Ahtisaari Bill Clinton Meeting with Bill Clinton
9. 2000 28 April Tarja Halonen Bill Clinton Meeting with Bill Clinton
10. 2002 16 April Tarja Halonen George W. Bush Meeting with George W. Bush
11. 2016 13 May Sauli Niinistö Barack Obama Meeting with Barack Obama
Meeting with Nordic prime ministers
12. 2017 28 August Sauli Niinistö Donald Trump Meeting with Donald Trump
13. 2019 1–3 October Sauli Niinistö Donald Trump Meeting with Donald Trump
14. 2022 4 March Sauli Niinistö Joe Biden Meeting with Joe Biden
15. 2022 19 May Sauli Niinistö Joe Biden Meeting with Joe Biden
Meeting with Swedish prime minister Magdalena Andersson
16. 2023 6–10 March Sauli Niinistö Joe Biden Meeting with Joe Biden
17. 2024 9–11 July Alexander Stubb Joe Biden Meeting with Joe Biden
attend 2024 NATO summit
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Embassies

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The Embassy of the United States is located in Helsinki. The Embassy of Finland is located in Washington, D.C..

Public opinion

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According to the 2012 U.S. Global Leadership Report, 48% of Finnish people approve of U.S. leadership, with 34% disapproving and 18% uncertain.[14]

Arctic relations

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Finland–United States relations on Arctic issues are strong. Addressing these issues is normally done through the Arctic Council, as both countries believe it to be the leading way of cooperation on Arctic issues.

At the 2024 NATO summit, on 11 July 2024, it was decided that the United States, Canada and Finland are to form the ICE Pact, in which Finland will serve as the majority builder of icebreaker vessels.[15][16]

Cultural exchange

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St. Urho, saint of Finland

The League of Finnish-American Societies (Finnish: Suomi-Amerikka Yhdistysten Liitto) is a non-profit organization promoting cultural exchange between countries which operates in Finland. It has around 30 chapters in Finland, e.g. those in Helsinki, Turku, Oulu and Kuopio.[17]

Finnish Americans celebrate FinnFest USA, a festival held annually in the United States on the occasion of midsummer.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ K. Marianne Wargelin Brown, "Finnish Americans." Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 2, Gale, 2014), pp. 137-151.
  2. ^ Department of State Bulletin, September 2, 1945, p. 339
  3. ^ "Former Finnish premier is cleared over Iraq papers leak". The Independent. 20 March 2004.
  4. ^ Finnish Customs statistics for 2006. http://www.tulli.fi/resources/tekstiversio.jsp?pageoid=24045 Archived 2008-01-20 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ "Biden signs ratification documents approving NATO membership for Finland and Sweden". CNBC. 9 August 2022.
  6. ^ "Secretary Antony J. Blinken at the Defense Cooperation Agreement Signing Ceremony". United States Department of State. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
  7. ^ "Finland Seals Defense Deal With US to Boost Security". Bloomberg.com. 2023-12-14. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
  8. ^ ""President Biden Announces Key Nominations"". www.whitehouse.gov. 8 October 2021.
  9. ^ "Biden in Europe highlights: President touts Finland's NATO membership after summit". NBC News. 2023-07-13. Retrieved 2023-07-13.
  10. ^ "Biden in Finland: Putin 'already lost' Ukraine war – DW – 07/13/2023". dw.com. Retrieved 2023-07-13.
  11. ^ Rasmussen, Sune Engel; Michaels, Daniel; Restuccia, Andrew (2023-07-13). "Biden Visit Cements Finland's Pivot Away From Neutrality". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2023-07-13.
  12. ^ Hämäläinen, Unto (13 July 2023). "Seitsemän vierailua Suomeen" [‘Seven visits to Finland’]. Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). Helsinki: Sanoma. pp. A 8–10. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  13. ^ "Nordic Business Forum 2018". Nordic Business Forum. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  14. ^ U.S. Global Leadership Project Report - 2012 Gallup
  15. ^ "Nato-jäsenyys tuo Suomelle himoitun yhteistyön". www.iltalehti.fi (in Finnish). 2024-07-11. Retrieved 2024-07-12.
  16. ^ "US, Canada, Finland launch effort to build ice-breaking ships as China and Russia cooperate in Arctic". 11 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  17. ^ "In English - Suomi-Amerikka Yhdistysten Liitto". SAM. Retrieved 10 December 2022.

  This article incorporates public domain material from U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets. United States Department of State.

Further reading

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  • Fields, Marek. "Reinforcing Finland's Attachment to the West: British and American Propaganda and Cultural Diplomacy in Finland, 1944-1962." (2015). Abstract
  • Golubev, Alexey, and Irina Takala. The Search for a Socialist El Dorado: Finnish Immigration to Soviet Karelia from the United States and Canada in the 1930s (MSU Press, 2014)
  • Hasan, Ali Ghafil. "US-Finland Economic Relations 1917-1945." Eurasian Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences 2 (2021): 28-34. online
  • Jakobson, Max. The diplomacy of the winter war: an account of the Russo-Finnish War, 1939-1940 (Harvard Univ Press, 1961.)
  • Rislakki, Jukka, "`Without Mercy': U.S. Strategic Intelligence and Finland in the Cold War," Journal of Military History, (Jan. 2015) 79#1 pp: 127–49.
  • Schwartz, Andrew J. America and the Russo-Finnish War (Public Affairs Press, 1960)
  • Wargelin Brown, K. Marianne. "Finnish Americans." Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 2, Gale, 2014), pp. 137–151. online
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  Media related to Relations of Finland and the United States at Wikimedia Commons

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