Minister for increasing role of women in defense forces
Published : 20 Jan 2020, 23:45
Minister of Defense Antti Kaikkonen on Monday expressed the willing to increase the role of women in the military.
Addressing a defense course for decision makers in Helsinki, Kaikkonen said the Finnish Defense Forces should attract more female volunteers, reported news agency Xinhua.
"This would have a positive impact on the defense willingness as well," he said.
Finland has a general conscription, but for men only. Women can do the military service, of six to 12 months, as volunteers.
Kaikkonen said about 1,000 Finnish women apply annually for military service, while the number of men taking the military service as a legal obligation is around 24,000 per year.
He said that by now some 9,000 women have been trained since 1995 and are in the military reserve. He added that the day is not that far when a woman reaches the rank of a general in Finland.