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The Finnish Defence Forces (Finnish Puolustusvoimat; Swedish Försvarsmakten) is a cadre army of 16500, of which 8700 professional soldiers (officers), with a standard readiness strength of 34,700 people in uniform (27,300 army, 3,000 navy, and 4,400 air force). Finland's defence budget equals about 1.4% of the GDP. A universal male conscription is in place, under which all men above 18 years of age serve from 6 to 12 months. However, inhabitants of Finland's Åland islands and Jehovah's Witnesses are exempt. Also a 13-month-long non-military service is possible. As of 1995, women were permitted to serve on a voluntary basis. The defence is based on a large trained reserve. During the Cold War, Finland could have mobilized 490,000 reservists in a conflict, but this number has since been reduced to some 350,000 due to ongoing budget cuts. The Finnish Defence Forces are under the command of the Chief of Defence, who is directly subordinate to the President of the Republic in matters related to the military command. The current Chief of Defence is Admiral Juhani Kaskeala. Military doctrine: Self-defensive; independent defence of all of domestic territory; NATO Partnership for Peace affiliate; committed to pan-European (incl. Russia) treaty of trust-enhancing cooperation, such as providing access for international observers during major exercises. In 2005 the Finnish defence ministry announced a cost-cutting plan. The Helsinki Air Defence Regiment in Hyrylä and the Savo Brigade in Mikkeli will be disbanded in 2007. At the same time Kotka Coastal Command will be disbanded and its duties will be taken over by other units.
Military branches The Frontier Guard (Rajavartiolaitos) is under the Ministry of the Interior but can be incorporated into the Defence Forces when required by defence readiness. Military Ranks The rank of sotamies is not actually given to new recruits anymore, although it was used earlier. The lowest rank is per specialization or after the military unit in which the private is serving. In the infantry the rank is jääkäri (Jäger), artillery has tykkimies (gunner), signals has viestimies (signalman), Guard Jäger Regiment has kaartinjääkäri (guard jäger), and so on. Generally file and rank may be referred to as sotamiehet. Obsolete or historical ranks include: ylivääpeli/överfältväbel (a rank between Chief Warrant Officer and Warrant Officer), kornetti, ratsumestari, prikaatinkenraali (old form for prikaatikenraali) and lentomestari. Semi-obsolete ranks include those of warrant officers (vääpeli, sotilasmestari), as since training of full-time employed NCOs ended in 2001, and those who have recently graduated from the NCO academy usually hold the rank of a Second Lieutenant or a Lieutenant. Those who held the ranks of vääpeli or sotilasmestari have been retired or promoted to Second Lieutenant or Lieutenant in order to streamline the ranks of employed personnel. From 2001 onwards, the National Defence College train all new commissioned officers. Some semi-obsolete ranks are still used for NCOs in the reserve. The highest attainable rank for conscripts at the end of their mandatory service are lance corporal (rank and file), sergeant (NCOs) and second lieutenant/vänrikki (automatic promotion for officer "students" on the day their service is over, who are in practice the most senior NCO conscripts). In the reserve, one can get higher promotions, but in the end, a conscript is always considered junior in rank to any commissioned officers or employed personnel. Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim is the only person to have held the title of sotamarsalkka/fältmarskalk (Field Marshal) and later Suomen marsalkka/Marskalk av Finland (Marshal of Finland). Note that both Sotamarsalkka and Suomen marsalkka were officially not military ranks, but rather honorary titles. In practice Sotamarsalkka was treated as a rank, and it had a distinctive rank insignia. As Suomen marsalkka Mannerheim continued to wear the insignia of sotamarsalkka. History The autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland had its of standing army and its own system of conscription. The Guard of Finland fought alongside the imperial army in several of Russias wars. Russification efforts after 1899 resulted in dodging of the draft and later in the abolishment of conscription. During World War I Finnish volunteers secretly joined the Imperial German army to receive military traning. These Finnish Jäger troops arrived in February 1918 in the white capital city of Vaasa and formed the core of the White Army in the Finnish Civil War. The Russian revolutions had caused the creation of Red and White Guards in Finland. On January 25, 1918 the White Guard were declared to be the official troops of the white government. This marks the formation of the armed forces of the independent Finland. After the Finnish Civil War the armed forces were organised according to the German system. In February 1919 the White Guard separated from the armed forces and became an independent organisation. Finnish Defence Forces fought in two wars against the Soviet Union (Winter War and Continuation war) and then against Germany (Lapland War) in the Second World War. Peace terms in the Continuation War included disbanding the White Guard. Restrictions on armaments The Paris Peace Treaty after the Continuation War limited the strength of the Finnish Army to 34,400 men, the Navy to 4,500 men and the maximum displacement of naval ships to 10,000 tonnes. The Air Force was limited to 3,000 men and 60 planes. Also certain weapons such as guided missiles, submarines, proximity mines, torpedo boats, bombers with internal bomb racks and any weapons of German origin were forbidden. Later "defensive" missiles were allowed. All of the restrictions, except for the ban on nuclear weapons, were unilaterally lifted by president Mauno Koivisto after the breakup of the Soviet Union. Peacekeeping operations Finland has taken part in UN peacekeeping operations since 1956, (the number of Finnish peacekeepers who have served since 1956 amount to 43,000). In 2003 over a thousand Finnish peacekeepers were involved in peacekeeping operations,including UN and NATO led missions. According to the Finnish law the maximum simultaneous strength of the peacekeeping forces is limited to 2000 soldiers. Since 1996 the Pori Brigade has trained a special jäger battalion, the Finnish Rapid Deployment Force (FRDF), which can take part in crisis management operations at short notice. Finnish participation and number of personnel in peacekeeping operations as of 2006: See also | ||||||||
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