Legacy of Koivisto seen as security policy asset

The principles held by former president Mauno Koivisto quickly emerged as one of the topics in the current security policy discussion, as the Nordic country mourned the death of Koivisto on Friday and Saturday.

Koivisto passed away on Friday evening in a hospital in Helsinki at the age of 93. He was the president of Finland serving in office from 1982 to 1994.

The incumbent president Sauli Niinistö said in his national TV address Saturday morning that Koivisto had defined his foreign policy line as "good relations with neighbors".

Niinistö said that seeking for a peaceful way was the core of the foreign policy maintained by Koivisto.

Timo Soikkanen, former professor of political history in the Turku University and the official historian of the Finnish Foreign Office, told Xinhua that Koivisto kept underlining that the security interests of the USSR must be taken into account.

The emphasis on the Koivisto legacy on Saturday tied in with an a statement by Niinistö on Thursday during his visit to Berlin. Niinistö said that "no one must be allowed to attack through Finnish territory to any direction".

He also said Finland itself will decide whether its air space or territory can be used to defend Estonia or the rest of the Baltic countries.

Niinistö referred to the assistance clause of the EU Lisbon treaty. "Finland cannot be a country that gives military aid to others but does not receive it."

A pre-scheduled appearance at a security policy convention in Tallinn, Estonia on Saturday gave Niinistö the opportunity to remind Estonians about the Koivisto legacy.

While Estonia belongs to NATO, Finland is militarily non-aligned albeit a peace partner of NATO. Many Estonians expected Finland would join NATO, but Finland has so far not applied for a membership.

Niinistö said a deep distrust prevails now in the European security. "We need a series of positive actions to improve trust and security", he said.

In his address in Tallinn, Niinistö admitted that to many European countries the main forum of military cooperation is NATO. But to Finland, the military cooperation of the EU is an important factor. "The EU is not a real union, if it does not contribute to the security of its citizens."