Such incidents are extremely rare in Finland.
In November, a number of Finnish diplomats jointly sent a letter to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Elina Valtonen (NCP) expresses dissatisfaction with Finland’s policy in the Middle East.
A total of 79 Foreign Ministry officials said in the letter that Finland should condemn Israel’s unjustified use of force and possible violations of international law in the Gaza Strip and call for a ceasefire in the Strip.
In Finland, it is extremely rare for civil servants to send critical messages to ministers.
Speaking about the letter, Valtonen told news service STT that it was good to discuss Finnish policy.
He added that Finland’s foreign and security policy in the Middle East is based on human rights, democracy, the rule of law and equality.
Valtonen also pointed out that Finland is a strong supporter of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which tries individuals for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. She said the ICC was collecting evidence of potential war crimes in the region.
“There is no doubt that Finland is ready and willing to condemn all these crimes, regardless of who the perpetrators are,” he said. It could be a sign of a war crime or worse. .
Valtonen also said that Finland has consistently condemned Israel’s actions in illegal outposts in the West Bank.
In October, when the United Nations General Assembly called for a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, Finland abstained. Valtonen said at the time that he would have voted in favor of the resolution if Finland had clearly condemned the attacks by the terrorist organization Hamas.
In December, less than a month after the diplomats sent their letter, Finland voted in favor of a UN General Assembly resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.
Three of the four parties in the coalition government, including the prime minister, have shown firm support for Israel’s policies. Peteri OlupoNational Union of Finland, Party of Finland, Christian Democratic Party.
The diplomats who wrote the letter told STT that the government should agree on a balanced policy regarding Israel.
Most of the civil servants who signed the letter were junior employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However, the signatories do not include the Finnish ambassador.
Veteran diplomats are divided on the letter, with some seeing it as a brave and worthy effort and others seeing it as inappropriate action, STT officials said.
Member of the Finnish Party Jani Makela He criticized the diplomats’ letter and suggested they had overstepped their authority. In a post on social media platform X, the lawmaker said civil servants must follow ministry and government policies.
He suggested the civil servants’ actions openly opposed their bosses and suggested those who took part in the letter should consider resigning.
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