鈥業t鈥檚 everyone鈥檚 business.鈥� In Finland, national security is a shared responsibility.
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Mark Sappenfield Senior global correspondent
| Parolannummi, Finland
Ala Satu-K枚nni settles in behind her .338-caliber high-powered sniper rifle, traces of pink in her short hair just to let the world know she鈥檚 not taking herself too seriously.
But looking squint-eyed through the rifle鈥檚 telescopic sight, she is all business. The target, even from a distance of 500 feet, looks as big as a highway billboard.
She squeezes the trigger 鈥� gently, not rushed. The rifle responds with a low, concussive thwump that fills the shooting range, more felt than heard.
Why We Wrote This
A story focused onNational security in Finland is a society-wide effort that goes beyond a focus on military hardware. Under the shadow of Russian aggression, Europe is taking a look.
The target falls. It is no match for Finland鈥檚 newest sharpshooter.
Ms. Satu-K枚nni is not an active-duty soldier. She is not a reservist. In fact, she is not in the military at all. She is an environmental impact assessor for a nearby town. Yet on an early summer weekend this June, she has voluntarily come to this military facility in Parolannummi, an area amid Finland鈥檚 sweeping pine forests and long known as a place for military training. She has come with 15 mostly middle-aged women to make sure of one thing: If Russia attacks, they will be ready to do their part.
Today, the group is attending a course on shooting pistols, semiautomatic rifles 鈥� and those sniper rifles that have been known to hit a target more than a mile away. Many of the women have taken other courses, too. One happily tells of the time she learned to drive trucks to support military logistics. Several others took a survival course that involves spending two nights in the woods with nothing but their wits. Ms. Satu-K枚nni has learned how to close off the air ducts and sewers in an emergency shelter and how to recognize disinformation campaigns online.
This is national security, Finland-style.
For an awakening Europe, and a world seemingly stuck in chronic crises, the Finnish approach to security holds potentially transformational lessons. This year, a great rearming of the continent is underway as European officials conclude they can no longer depend on the United States to help defend them from potential Russian aggression.
Finland offers a model for no-nonsense self-sufficiency. After all, the great shadow now over Ukraine never left Finland 鈥� as its 800-mile border with Russia has been one constant reminder. Another are the stories still told around family hearths and in schoolrooms about how close Russia came to conquering Finland in the bitter winters of World War II.
This model is much more than tanks, artillery, and air defense systems. Instead, security is grounded by a certain Finnish mindset. Officials call it 鈥渃omprehensive security,鈥� but it is also known as henkinen maanpuolustus, which is perhaps best translated as 鈥渟piritual national defense.鈥�
The idea is that defense is not a military task, but a responsibility for all of Finnish society, from businesses stockpiling fuel and grain to environmental impact assessors learning how to shoot a sniper rifle on weekends.
鈥淓urope is mostly focused on acquiring military capability, but having a capable defense is not only about that,鈥� says Matti Pesu, a security analyst at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs. 鈥淚t is about support from society, and that鈥檚 the hardest part to emulate. It is a mindset, and it permeates society at different levels from the national government to municipalities and, to a certain extent, companies and the private sector. It is a whole-of-society effort to protect the country.鈥�
What has emerged is more than mere preparedness. It is a changed sense of what security is, and it is felt deeply among many Finns. It is the agency that comes from participation, and the knowledge that you have done what you can to defend your country. It is a trust born of knowing that many of those around you are doing likewise.
It is also a bedrock resilience. Finns call this sisu, an understanding that, in pushing calmly past the limits of fear and doubt, you find within yourself a reserve that can redefine how much you think you can do.
In Ukraine, Russia is probing the boundaries of divisive strength 鈥� the power to conquer those in opposition. Finland is exploring the boundaries of a small nation鈥檚 ability to stand up to such brute force through a unique sense of unity.
鈥淭his is very important,鈥� says Jarno Metso, an instructor for Finland鈥檚 National Defence Training Association, which organized the weekend shooting class in Parolannummi. 鈥淲e鈥檙e such a small country with not that many people,鈥� about 5.5 million.
鈥淭his is everyone鈥檚 business,鈥� Mr. Metso continues. 鈥淚f Russia attacks Finland, everybody needs to take part. There is no other possibility.鈥�
Finland鈥檚 security as a model for Europe
Europe is taking notice. Last year, the head of the European Commission in Brussels asked the former president of Finland, Sauli Niinist枚, to deliver a report on the needs of European Union security.
鈥淎 prerequisite for preparedness is to understand that security is the foundation of everything we hold dear,鈥� Mr. Niinist枚 wrote in the report, 鈥淧reparing Europe for a More Dangerous World.鈥�
鈥淪ecurity is a public good 鈥� the most important thing that everyone needs,鈥� he wrote. 鈥淚t is the precondition for maintaining our values, as well as being a necessity for our economic success and competitiveness. If we lose security, it takes with it our well-being and our plans for the future. ... A change in mindset is needed to build the trust that allows us to do this as the whole of society.鈥�
Finland鈥檚 Security Committee, a specialist body in connection with the Ministry of Defence, coordinates and facilitates 鈥渃omprehensive security鈥� across government ministries, the business community, and civil society.
Recently, it has been doing a lot more presentations for its European allies. Secretary-General Petteri Korvala says the secretariat has given about 100 in the past six months 鈥� already more than in the previous year, which was then the committee鈥檚 high-water mark.
鈥淚t belongs to the Finnish mentality that we are not pushing our solution,鈥� Mr. Korvala says. 鈥淏ut we have an approach where we are willing to talk about our solutions, and there鈥檚 a lot of interest internationally at the moment.鈥�
The Finnish model includes conscription for all 18-year-old males 鈥� though community service is also an option. All conscripts then become part of an 870,000-strong reserve, which is kept sharp with regular training.
More unusual is what is happening at the military base at Parolannummi, which is about an hour north of Helsinki. The National Defence Training Association is using the base for its volunteer courses.
Not far from the shooting range, Mr. Metso stands in the half-light of sun-dappled trees surrounded by a dozen or so young men and one woman. The men have all gone through basic training and are now in the reserves.
They look the part of soldiers, standing in full camouflage, their rifles slung over their shoulders with an air of casual confidence. As reservists, they will have state-mandated military training.
But they鈥檝e come here of their own accord to further hone their skills. In this class, they are learning guerrilla warfare techniques. Today鈥檚 task: learning how to set up a roadside bomb.
Mr. Metso and his fellow instructors demonstrate the best places to hide them and how to evade detection. Then they send off small groups to practice.
In one group is Mikael K枚ng盲s. His workaday Clark Kent identity is being a cybersecurity specialist for Finland鈥檚 health care system. Here at the base, he鈥檚 working on his superpower: stealth.
鈥淲hen I was in the military, I enjoyed getting the intel,鈥� Mr. K枚ng盲s says. He pauses, and then adds with a grin, more bluntly, 鈥淚 enjoyed sneaking up on people, the excitement of that.鈥�
He could hardly have a better teacher.
Mr. Metso tells of the time he learned about 鈥渟tealth tracking.鈥� He practiced the techniques he learned by walking through the front door of his house, taking off his shoes and jacket, and then proceeding to walk into the living room, where his wife was on the computer. She had no idea he was behind her until he said, 鈥淗ello, honey.鈥�
His stories from the field sound like tales from the wildest fantasies of Hollywood spy movies. He once sneaked up on a group of trainees standing at the center of a frozen lake, moving so slowly they never saw him. They dubbed him 鈥淲hite Death.鈥�
During walks in the woods, Mr. Metso says, 鈥淚 wanted to see every animal before it saw me.鈥� He gave up hunting because he could routinely get to within 15 feet of moose, bears, and lynx. 鈥淚 preferred just to watch them.鈥�
The stories are more than entertaining. They point to crucial aspects of Finland鈥檚 comprehensive security mindset. For one, they show Finland鈥檚 curious ability to be militarily prepared without tipping into militarism.
鈥淧eople who want to play war, they don鈥檛 stay long,鈥� Mr. Metso says. 鈥淭he attitude is wrong. Our job is not to fight; it is to prevent fighting.鈥�
In some respects, this makes Finland more a nation of Eagle Scouts than of soldiers. 鈥淲e鈥檙e taught from the time we鈥檙e kids that the forest is not a scary place; it鈥檚 a familiar place,鈥� says Toni Tyrmi, a local coordinator for the National Defence Training Association. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 have to worry about getting lost. If I have to stay there, I can do that.鈥�
In military terms, you could call this the ultimate home-field advantage. Yet Finns鈥� connection to nature has also forged a key element of its approach to security. Nature teaches confidence amid discomfort.
鈥淚f you teach the uncomfortable, then times of crisis are much easier,鈥� says Mr. Metso, referencing the Finnish concept of resilience. 鈥�Sisu means that in difficult situations you don鈥檛 have to push; you keep your calmness and do the right things. You don鈥檛 go over your limits; you go over what you think your limits are.鈥�
鈥淲e don鈥檛 doubt we can defend the country.鈥�
Back at the shooting range, Ms. Satu-K枚nni says she began testing her limits after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The National Defence Training Association says enrollment in its courses has spiked since 2022. One instructor recalls a local event where the speaker thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin as their greatest recruiter.
But the volunteer team leader at the shooting range, Eija Eriksson, a middle school English and Swedish teacher, got her start during the pandemic.
鈥淎t the beginning of COVID, the schools had closed, and I had these four walls around me and was thinking that everything was miserable, and I started thinking, how would I make it if the situation were really severe?鈥� she says.
Ms. Eriksson found the training association website and has been taking courses ever since, from administering first aid to interpreting maps. Her son, who did his military service at 18, jokes that she鈥檚 catching up to him one weekend at a time. She says she tries to limit herself to one course a month. She is not always successful.
At the range, there is laughter and no small number of selfies. Many of these women have become friends after taking many courses together. But each says there has been another benefit: a greater sense of mental peace amid the uncertainty across the border.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to be in a position that I need to use a gun, but if that happens, I want to be sure I am able to use one,鈥� Ms. Eriksson says. 鈥淚鈥檓 more comfortable that I could survive and help others. There鈥檚 a sense of being useful.鈥�
Mr. Metso put it this way, not boastfully, but with a note of steel: 鈥淲e don鈥檛 doubt we can defend the country.鈥�
Preparing citizens to fight: The key is cooperation
As the director of UN Women Finland, Jaana Hirsikangas could not have been further from the world of mess halls and military formations. Finnish women are not subject to conscription, and Ms. Hirsikangas had never much considered the military.
Then she was invited to attend the National Defence Course.
Held four times a year in four-week sessions, the National Defence Course is by invitation only. Those invited are people who work in important roles at organizations that are influential at the national level. They are Finland鈥檚 leaders, from members of Parliament to corporate CEOs to university professors. That gives the course national prestige.
鈥淚t is a great, great honor to get in, and not everyone gets it,鈥� says Ms. Hirsikangas, chatting in a caf茅 on a rainy Helsinki day.
The doors to Finland鈥檚 national security structure are thrown wide open for those in the course. Top officials from security agencies are brought in, and the class is expected to grill them.
Participants take trips to military installations and are free to talk to personnel to get their views. And throughout the course, the class works through a hypothetical security crisis, with each participant assigned a pretend role in a government agency. By the end, the groups present their solutions to the (pretend) prime minister, who decides what action to take.
The key is cooperation, says Col. Jussi Kosonen, who runs the course.
鈥淲e set up problems that can鈥檛 be solved by an individual actor,鈥� he says. 鈥淐ooperation is always difficult. People want to cooperate within their silos. But comprehensive security requires cooperation between different actors.鈥�
The course also has a tendency to choose scenarios that later come true. Last Christmas Day, a Russia-linked oil tanker dragged its anchor more than 60 miles across the Baltic Sea floor, eventually severing crucial power and communication cables between Finland and Estonia. The National Defence Course had previously gamed out that scenario almost exactly.
In that light, perhaps Finland鈥檚 response was not surprising. Summing up the effectiveness of the Finnish action, a Swiss newspaper wrote, 鈥淭he Finnish authorities reacted quickly and decisively after the suspected sabotage of undersea cables, boarding a suspicious ship in the Baltic Sea. Europe must be prepared to follow this example.鈥�
鈥淣othing I knew beforehand could prepare me for what I experienced鈥� in the course, says Ms. Hirsikangas. 鈥淚 was learning about facts that I wasn鈥檛 able to comprehend before, like how well society is prepared. It shakes your mind to understand.鈥�
Talking to soldiers and police and firefighters, she was struck by how little she understood about Finland鈥檚 security 鈥� and the people behind it. 鈥淎ll these people do it with all their heart, I got so emotional,鈥� she says. 鈥淭he honor and the commitment 鈥� I never knew how much they give of themselves for us. So often I had tears in my eyes. I did not expect that.鈥�
But what she took most from the course was what she learned from her fellow classmates. 鈥淭here is such a variety of perspectives,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e kept challenging the instructors and asking questions.鈥�
Sociologists speak of the importance of building trust across boundaries. Societies tend to separate into silos of profession, race, religion, age, and so on. The healthiest societies are those that build trust across these boundaries. Colonel Kosonen says this is an explicit goal of the National Defence Courses 鈥� intentionally choosing participants from a range of fields, locations, and backgrounds and making sure they are forced to work together.
The dividend is apparent. Each graduate gets a pin. Ms. Hirsikangas makes sure to wear hers any time she goes to Parliament or a government ministry. 鈥淲henever you see someone with the pin, you go up and shake their hand and ask, 鈥榃hat class were you in?鈥欌�� she says. 鈥淚 can go up to a member of Parliament, and it鈥檚 not a big deal. It鈥檚 a symbol of unity.鈥�
The course did raise a pressing concern for her. If conscription and military service are such an important part of the nation鈥檚 security mindset, then why are women not included?
According to a recent poll by E2 Research, some 70% of Finnish women say they are prepared to defend Finland鈥檚 borders 鈥� though the sentiment is strongest among women ages 50-59 (83%) but less so among women 18-29 (47%). Ms. Hirsikangas sees not only a double standard, but also a missed opportunity.
For one, data shows sexual violence against women always goes up in times of crisis, she says. Having women more integrated into the defense structure could help alleviate that. 鈥淚t鈥檚 such a waste of the whole-security mindset to exclude half the people,鈥� she says. Comprehensive security 鈥渋s crucial for society, but it is also a benefit鈥� to those involved.
For example, her National Defence Course class, like many others, continues to meet and learn.
They recently came together to meet at one member鈥檚 office. Weeks later they planned to go to an art exhibition together. They鈥檝e also taken additional trips to Finnish security installations as part of refresher activities. 鈥淚t鈥檚 all volunteer,鈥� says Ms. Hirsikangas. 鈥淚t鈥檚 because we want to be together.鈥�
This is a core tenet of comprehensive security 鈥� fueling voluntary commitment.
A network of trust
Mr. Korvala of the Security Committee stresses that the government has a key role, but true security is only possible if it is shared, and not through coercion or even well-intentioned compulsion. Of course there are regulations, but if individuals鈥� commitment to comprehensive security stopped there, it would not be enough against the most dangerous threats.
鈥淭he Security Committee is not a decision-making organization; it is a network of trust,鈥� he says.
Companies are eager to collaborate with the government on security precisely because it acts as a partner, not as a bureaucratic potentate, says Jari Pirhonen, head of security for Tietoevry Tech Services, which provides information technology systems such as data centers and cloud platforms.
鈥淲e want to do the voluntary things,鈥� he says. 鈥淚f there was too much pressure from the government, we would feel that we had our hands full, and we would be less inclined to engage in voluntary efforts.鈥�
On this day, Mr. Pirhonen is sitting in a conference room of the National Emergency Supply Agency, a government office that works with businesses to increase national resilience, talking to Antti Nyqvist. Usually, Mr. Pirhonen is pinging Mr. Nyqvist with some question or concern or idea.
Mr. Nyqvist is the emergency agency鈥檚 coordinator for the IT sector, and the way he goes about his role is key. He notes that most of a country鈥檚 vital infrastructure is privately owned. So how does the government go about making sure it stays secure?
His job, he says, is to be a friend. 鈥淚t might be a water supply company that can鈥檛 afford the security it needs,鈥� he says. He doesn鈥檛 tell it what to do, he says. But 鈥淲e can engage with the water supply company: 鈥榃hat can we do to help you get better coverage?鈥欌��
It鈥檚 this approach that makes Mr. Nyqvist and his agency valuable to Finnish business, says Mr. Pirhonen. 鈥淚t creates a personal relationship,鈥� he says. 鈥淏usinesses don鈥檛 share information until it is a familiar face.鈥�
Indeed, the adversarial relationship between government and business so common in many countries is comparatively muted here. To Mr. Pirhonen, it is clear that each side can help the other. For example, the Russian invasion of Ukraine raises questions for his company, too. 鈥淐ustomers say, 鈥楢re you prepared for this?鈥� It is expected that we can show the ground is solid,鈥� he says.
With the National Emergency Supply Agency and firms like Tietoevry working together, the security of both can improve. 鈥淚f I had a problem, I could call Antti and ask, 鈥楢re you seeing this?鈥欌�� says Mr. Pirhonen. 鈥淚 can talk to Antti and trust he is not going to tell that to other businesses.鈥�
Heli Tammivuori helps different emergency networks cooperate, and not too long ago she went to Ukraine. What she saw left an impression. All the work of getting public and private organizations to collaborate, all the legislation needed to enable the country to move quickly and solve crises 鈥� Ukraine began that work in 2022. 鈥淲e already have that in place,鈥� says Ms. Tammivuori.
At the military training facility in Parolannummi, coordinator Mr. Tyrmi sees the same thing. 鈥淯kraine has learned the hard way today the lesson we learned the hard way 80 years ago.鈥�
