Finland

HELSINKI, April 15 (Reuters) - Finland's much-delayed Olkiluoto 3 (OL3) nuclear reactor, Europe's largest, began regular output early on Sunday, its operator said, boosting energy security in a region to which Russia has cut gas and power supplies.

Nuclear power remains controversial in Europe, primarily due to safety concerns, and news of OL3's start-up comes as Germany on Saturday switches off its last three remaining reactors, while Sweden, France, Britain and others plan new developments.

IMATRA, Finland (AP) — The construction of barbed-wired fence along Finland’s long border with Russia - primarily meant to curb illegal migration - has broken ground near the southeastern town of Imatra less than two weeks after the Nordic country joined NATO as the 31st member of the military alliance.

The Finnish Border Guard on Friday showcased the building of the initial three kilometer (1.8 mile) stretch of the fence to be erected in Pelkola near a crossing point off Imatra, a quiet lakeside town of some 25,000 people.

06 Apr 2023; MEMO: Finland said yesterday that it plans to purchase Israel's David's Sling missile defence system in a deal wotk $344 million.

The announcement came a day after Finland joined the NATO military alliance and is an effort to boost its defence capabilities.

"The David's Sling system will extend the operational range of Finland's ground-based air defense capabilities significantly," it said in a statement.

HELSINKI (AP) — Swedish prosecutors said Thursday a state actor was the most likely culprit for the explosions that incapacitated the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea last year, an act deemed as sabotage. However, they cautioned that the identity of the perpetrator was still unclear and hinted that it was likely to remain so.

Public prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist from the Swedish Prosecution Authority said in a statement that his office’s investigation is focused on examining if Swedish interests or Swedish security were threatened by the act.

HELSINKI, April 5 (Reuters) - Finland's outgoing Prime Minister Sanna Marin is stepping down as leader of the Social Democratic party, she said on Wednesday, adding she will serve as a regular lawmaker in the newly elected parliament from next week.

"I will start my work as member of parliament next week and I hope I can also lead a calmer life," Marin told a news conference, adding she would not run for president.

She said she had not received any offers for international positions.

HELSINKI (AP) — Finland’s parliamentary website was paralyzed by a denial-of-service attack on Tuesday, just before the country made its historic entry into NATO, a move that more than doubles NATO’s border with Russia and has angered Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The attacks — in which participants flood targets with junk data — made the parliament’s site hard to use, with many pages not loading and some functions not available for a time.

HELSINKI, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Finland's opposition National Coalition Party emerged as the largest party in the parliamentary election held on Sunday, according to the preliminary result reported by Finnish national broadcaster Yle.

HELSINKI, April 2 (Reuters) - Finland's opposition right-wing National Coalition Party (NCP) held a narrow lead in Sunday's parliamentary election, with 20.8% support from advance ballots, but the early tally is often skewed and the outcome remained a toss-up as counting continued.

The Social Democratic Party of Prime Minister Sanna Marin was second with 20.7% support, followed by the nationalist Finns Party at 18.6%, with 40.1% of the votes counted, justice ministry data showed.

HELSINKI (AP) — A general election in Finland was expected to result in a close finish by three political parties Sunday, with Prime Minister Sanna Marin’s Social Democrats fighting to secure a second term running the government.

Over 2,400 candidates from 22 parties were vying for the 200 seats in the Nordic country’s parliament, the Eduskunta. Some 40% of eligible voters cast their ballots in advance.

HELSINKI (AP) — Expulsions of Russian intelligence officers and visa refusals have substantially weakened Moscow’s intelligence operations in neighboring Finland in the past year, the Finnish Security and Intelligence Service said Thursday.

The intelligence agency, known by the abbreviation SUPO, said in a statement that Russian intelligence has been “squeezed” in the Nordic country because of the agency’s ability to compromise spy operations in 2022.