Finland continues to look for alternatives to strengthen their defensive capabilities. At the beginning of the week, the Ministry of the Interior opened the creation of new shooting ranges to public consultation, as well as the preservation of the activity of existing ones.
“The main objective will be to establish a sufficient number of fields of tactical and rifle shooting throughout the country,” said the head of the Interior last Tuesday in a statement. Although traditionally the population of the Nordic country has shown interest in the use of firearms, the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, the various covert actions of the Kremlin, and their proximity, since they share a border, has resulted in an increase in demand for this activityto which the government seeks to respond. In fact, as EFE reports, with a population of 5.6 million inhabitants, it is estimated that around 430,000 have a weapons license.
Finland wants to reach 1,000 fields
The government initiative would allow the legal framework to be modified, in order to simplify procedures for the granting of permits to open new shooting ranges, in addition to transferring its processing to a single entity, remaining in the hands of the Police. As stated by the agency, Finland currently has about 670 shooting ranges for civilian use, in addition to military ranges. The government seeks to raise this figure to 1,000 in the next five years.
The Ministry of the Interior also wanted to specify that the project will take into account the needs of different actors such as public authorities, national defense organizations, reservists and other users of sports and hunting shooting. Previously, the Finnish Government reported that the number of firing ranges not managed by the Armored Forces had been declining significantly over the past three decades.
Ukraine will receive a new arms package
In the context of the war in Ukraine, the Nordic and Baltic countries, which also included Finland, announced this Thursday that they will finance the purchase of a US arms package for Ukraine worth $500 million. “This joint pledge to contribute to the PURL initiative will further strengthen the commitment of the Nordic and Baltic countries to support Ukraine. It is crucial that Ukraine quickly receives critical defense material,” said the Finnish Defense Minister, Antti Häkkänen.
The acquisition of weapons occurs through what is known as Ukraine Priority Requirements List (PURL). A program promoted by NATO, which allows alliance partners to invest in American weapons and later donate them to kyiv. The funds agreed upon by the different states are transferred to a NATO account and it is from there that they are purchased directly from the United States.