Finland has been drawing on its geographic positioning, its full membership of NATO and a hardening security environment in the Baltic Sea to strengthen its naval industrial base. Within its archipelago of islands, local knowledge and expertise are increasingly viewed as an asset.
Speaking to Shephard, Topi Juga, a research fellow at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA), said the importance of the maritime domain to Finland could hardly be overstated. With Finland’s land border with Russia now effectively closed, Juga said “as much as 95% of Finland’s goods exports and imports arrives through its ports”, covering more than 86%