Finland’s parliament votes sure to NATO

HELSINKI, May 17 (Reuters) - Finland's parliament on Tuesday overwhelmingly authorised a proposal to use for membership of the NATO military alliance in a historic coverage shift prompted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

President Sauli Niinisto and the government determined officially on Sunday that Finland would apply for membership however the decision was pending parliament's approval.

Of the 200 lawmakers, 188 voted in favour and eight in opposition to the application, Speaker Matti Vanhanen mentioned.

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Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said the choice was no cause to have a good time as a result of "there may be battle in Europe".

"Finland's membership in NATO will not change our primary pondering that we'll at all times seek peaceful options and we are a peace-loving nation that may at the start seek diplomatic solutions to every battle," he stated during the debate.

Opponents to the applying included some lawmakers from the Left Alliance, a part of Finland's five-party coalition, among them Markus Mustajarvi who challenged the decision with a counter proposal leading to it being put to the vote.

"Our border would change into the border between the military alliance and Russia. New tensions wouldn't be a threat only through the utility course of however relatively a new and permanent condition of our overseas and safety policy," he mentioned.

Early on Tuesday, the international affairs committee decided to affix the state leadership in proposing to parliament that the Nordic country ought to apply for membership.

"Having heard a very giant number of consultants and having acquired the opinions of 10 (parliamentary) committees, the foreign affairs committee agrees with the federal government that Finland ought to apply for membership in NATO. This determination is unanimous," chairman Jussi Halla-aho advised reporters.

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Reporting by Anne Kauranen; Editing by Robert Birsel and Alison Williams

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