Speaking to Yle on Monday evening, Defence Minister Antti Häkkänen condemned the weekend incursion of two suspected Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that briefly entered Finnish airspace over the Gulf of Finland before turning back toward Russia. “We do not allow our airspace to be used for operations against a third country,” the minister said, adding that he had conveyed Finland’s displeasure to Kyiv. The remarks come after multiple stray drones were found on Finnish soil earlier this spring, incidents Helsinki believes are linked to Ukraine’s long-range strikes on Russian oil facilities near Primorsk. While Finland remains one of Ukraine’s staunchest supporters, Häkkänen stressed that accidental violations could erode domestic support for arms deliveries and NATO’s newly launched Nordic air-policing plan. Operationally, the defence minister revealed that Finnish Air Force F-18s and Army helicopters shadowed Sunday’s drones but did not fire because the craft were “metres” from the international boundary and posed minimal risk to civilians. Under peacetime rules, pilots may engage only if the object heads inland or carries obvious ordnance. The ministry has nonetheless ordered enhanced radar coverage and asked reservists to volunteer for spotter drills along the southeastern coastline. For multinational employers the episode raises fresh duty-of-care questions. Kotka-Hamina hosts Finland’s busiest forest-products port and several energy terminals; corporate security teams are now revising no-fly and muster-point protocols for crews rotating through the area. Aviation insurers likewise warn that premiums for drone-collision coverage on company jets could edge higher if incursions continue. Policy analysts note that Sweden and Estonia have already upgraded drone-defence legislation and expect Finland to table amendments before the summer recess—potentially including compulsory geofencing for commercial UAV operators and larger restricted zones around critical infrastructure.
Source: Yle
