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True Europeans? Finland’s EU Policy

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About this Event

14 Jun 2011 @ 11:00

About the Speaker:

H.E. Jaakko Iloniemi, one of Finland’s most distinguished foreign policy analysts. He is a former Finnish Ambassador to the USA, Ambassador to the CSCE and Deputy Head of Mission to the United Nations.

Mr. Iloniemi has been awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland for his foreign policy achievements and was Chancellor of the Order from 1997 until 2004. He is currently a member of the European Council of Foreign Relations.

About the Speech:

H.E. Jaakko Iloniemi portrayed Finland as a nation that has gradually grown accustomed to increasing regional integration. Like many of their partners, Finns recognise the economic and practical benefits of EU membership, yet some emotional reservations persist.

Iloniemi traced Finland’s long but cautious involvement in international cooperative initiatives. With its Nordic neighbours it created a visa-free travel area and a common labour market. In 1961 Finland joined the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), attracted by the idea that cooperation was strictly confined to the economic domain and EFTA had no political aspirations. Opinion was more divided on EU accession but an advisory referendum passed with 54% of the vote and Finland became an EU member in 1995.

Iloniemi admitted that Finnish politics is generally considered “quite a bore” – by the public as well as by international commentators. However the April 2011 Finnish parliamentary elections caused a stir across Europe, with the populist, eurosceptic True Finns making huge gains to become the third largest party in the Eduskunta (Finnish Parliament) with thirty-nine of two-hundred seats.

The rise of the True Finns, led by Timo Soini, can be attributed to a number of factors, however Iloniemi took the view that these are once-off occurrences and are unlikely to give way to long-term trends. The first factor was a campaign-financing scandal that hit the ruling Centre Party in 2010 and discredited the incumbents in the eyes of many voters. The second factor was the EU bailouts for member states in economic distress. Finland suffered its own financial crisis in 1991 and as a result has adopted a policy of fiscal conservatism over the last twenty years. As a result the public have little appetite for bailouts for what they consider careless, corrupt states like Greece and Portugal.

Iloniemi responded to the question posed in the title of his speech – can the Finns still be considered True Europeans? – with a resounding ‘yes’. Finland is by no means the only EU member state to have a strong eurosceptic party. In his view, the success of the True Finns will not change the course of Finnish politics in the long term – particularly because the party will remain outside the government. The coalition to be sworn in on Wednesday 22 June will be led by two pro-EU parties, the Conservatives and the Social Democrats.

Iloniemi compared the current political situation in Finland to “a storm but not a tornado”. The extent of the True Finns’ gains came as a surprise to almost everyone but it will be difficult to keep the movement together, especially if economic recovery continues. Pro-EU parties will continue to govern, maintaining Finland’s long tradition of cooperation and integration.

 

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