Finland: Lappeenranta authorities mull offering city's airport to NATO for military base

As the war between Russia and Ukraine continues to escalate unabated, authorities in Finland's Lappeenranta are contemplating offering the city's airport to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to establish a military base there. Notably, Lappeenranta city is located in Finland's South Karelia, around 30 kilometres from the Russian border.

"There are proposals regarding the city's airport after Finland joins the military alliance. The airport will be available if the Defense Forces want it," the city's mayor Kimmo Järva said, Finnish media outlet - Yle Uutiset reported. 

The mayor further claimed that Lappeenranta has not yet discussed with the country's Defense Ministry regarding the investments that a potential NATO membership would bring. Jarva remarked that South Karelia has a reason for hope owing to the advancement in the Finnish bid for NATO membership. He also expressed hope that someday Russians will be allowed again to visit the region, as the NATO membership would have no effect on the travel of ordinary people. During its Madrid summit on June 29, NATO formally invited Sweden and Finland to join the intergovernmental military alliance. 

Finland announced its intention to join NATO in May

Earlier in May, the Finnish administration officially announced the country's intention to join the military alliance. Speaking at a joint press conference on May 15, Finland's President Sauli Niinisto and Prime Minister Sanna Marin made the announcement in Helsinki. "This is a historic day. A new era begins," Niinisto stated, as per the Associated Press (AP). The debate over Finland's potential NATO membership had intensified in early April as the majority of the country's political leaders were in favour of joining the alliance. 

About NATO

It should be mentioned here that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is a 30-member intergovernmental military alliance. The organisation was established in the aftermath of World War II to implement the North Atlantic Treaty, which was signed on April 4, 1949. The alliance is a collective security arrangement in which NATO's independent member states commit to defending each other in the event of an external attack. Since the end of the Cold War, the alliance has been involved in military operations in the Balkans, the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa, among other places.

Image: AP