Finland, Israel extend military cooperation memorandum

Finland and Israel have quietly signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen military-technical cooperation, Finnish public broadcaster Yle has reported.

The memorandum covers cooperation in military research, development and procurement, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

Its contents have not been made public by Finland’s Ministry of Defence.

Under the agreement, the two countries have established a joint coordination group, which is due to meet at least once a year.

The memorandum was originally drawn up in 2013 and was due to expire. Finland subsequently proposed extending it.

Yle reported that, unlike previous five-year extensions, a decision was made at the beginning of 2024 to extend the memorandum for 10 years.

An Israeli Defence Ministry representative said that “Finland is Israel’s gateway to NATO and the European market”.

By Aghakazim Guliyev