NATO disputes over rapid deployment strategies delaying Finland’s decision on taking part in NRF operations

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Differences of opinion within NATO over the future of the organisation’s international emergency troops, the so-called NATO Response Force, are also causing a delay to the drawing up of the new security policy of Finland. The earlier intention to decide this autumn whether or not Finland should take part in the NRF operations has met with increasing opposition.
      Until now it seems that the disputes in Finland over the participation in the NRF activities were merely related to disagreements concerning NATO in general. Now the stalling tactics are given further justification by the argument that even the NATO member states are only now formulating a more compact NRF force.
      ”There are heated discussions within NATO itself over the matter”, a Finnish government source commented on Tuesday.
     
Finland’s decision whether or not to take part in the NRF operations is not included in the drawing up of the security and defence policy review, launched officially on Monday, but it does have a bearing on those parts of the review that deal with NATO and crisis management.
      The re-evaluation of the NRF troops is one of the rapidly changing concerns taking place, while Finland spends several months in preparing its security policy decisions.
     
A Ministry for Foreign Affairs memorandum from the spring states that Finland’s participation in the NRF activities is to be decided upon “among other things, after the experiences drawn from the ongoing EU rapid deployment reserve shifts are at our disposal.”
      Finland’s turn of duty in the German-led EU unit ended at the end of June. The decision has been expected in September, in order for Finland to be able to take part in the NRF troops' opening conference in November, and in the actual NRF operations in a unit led by Denmark from the beginning of 2010.
      On Monday, Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen (Centre) no longer considered the November deadline significant. Instead he said that “naturally the option of joining in later is available”.
     
Vanhanen deviated from the government’s previous policy by saying: “It is beneficial to gain experience from the EU rapid deployment unit operations and also to evaluate things from the point of view of the scale and timing of our available resources.”
      Finland’s next chance to add to its EU rapid deployment experiences will take place in early 2008 in a readiness unit lead by Sweden. Sweden, for its own part, is expected to reach a decision on involvement in the NRF troops before then.
     
Diplomatic sources inside NATO have reported that the United States announced in June that it would henceforth be reducing the involvement of its ground forces in NRF duty rosters.
      The troops have not reached the projected strength of 25,000 men, and now the NATO members must reach agreement on a new and less ambitious target.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Foreign Minister Kanerva: Finland should not delay decision on NRF forces (17.8.2007)
  Foreign Affairs Committee sees no obstacle to participation in NATO Reaction Force (18.6.2007)
  Antti Sierla to draft NATO report (23.8.2007)

Links:
  NATO Response Force, NRF

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