Finland Nato Ukraine aid strategy is staying on its own course. Defence Minister Antti Hakkänen has confirmed that the country will not be joining a new Nato-led arms procurement plan for Ukraine. Instead, Finland will continue to back Kyiv using its current approach, which relies heavily on local production.
The Nato plan, known as the Priority Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), allows Ukraine to share urgent weapons requests. Member nations can respond with funding or direct supplies, with packages often reaching 500 million US dollars in value.
Several Nordic neighbours, including Sweden, Norway and Denmark, have already joined. Norway’s Defence Minister Tore O. Sandvik recently said the scheme is designed to speed up critical deliveries to Ukraine while reinforcing Nato’s role in Europe’s security.
Hakkänen has made it clear that Finland is sticking to its existing model.
“We have committed our resources to the domestic industrial programme, in which we order products for Ukraine from our companies all over Finland,” he told Yle on Monday.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022, Finland has delivered 29 separate military aid packages. Most of this aid comes from Finnish defence manufacturers, ensuring both Ukraine’s support and the growth of the local arms sector.
The Finnish Ministry of Defence reports that the country has sent an estimated €2.8 billion in military assistance, ranking it among the top contributors per capita.
Hakkänen stressed that while Finland will not use the PURL system right now, it welcomes other nations taking part.
“We consider it important that there are countries using this initiative as well. We are still supporting Ukraine strongly and vigorously, but we are now focusing on products from domestic business operations,” he said.
This approach, he added, boosts Finland’s own defence readiness while keeping the domestic arms industry active.
The PURL framework was created by the US, Nato and Ukraine after former US President Donald Trump argued in July that European allies and Canada should fund more of Ukraine’s defence needs.
Reuters has reported that three Nordic governments have already agreed to fund the first $500 million tranche under PURL. While Finland has chosen not to join this round, Hakkänen confirmed that Helsinki remains in step with Nato’s broader Ukraine policy and continues to contribute on its own terms.
