Finland’s parliament votes yes to NATO

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

President Sauli Niinisto and the government decided formally on Sunday that Finland would apply for membership however the resolution was pending parliament's approval.

Of the 200 lawmakers, 188 voted in favour and eight against the appliance, Speaker Matti Vanhanen said.

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International Minister Pekka Haavisto said the choice was no motive to have fun as a result of "there may be struggle in Europe".

"Finland's membership in NATO is not going to change our primary considering that we are going to at all times seek peaceable options and we are a peace-loving nation that can at the beginning search diplomatic solutions to every conflict," he stated through the debate.

Opponents to the application included some lawmakers from the Left Alliance, a part of Finland's five-party coalition, amongst them Markus Mustajarvi who challenged the choice with a counter proposal resulting in it being put to the vote.

"Our border would develop into the border between the military alliance and Russia. New tensions wouldn't be a threat solely in the course of the software course of but relatively a brand new and everlasting condition of our foreign and security coverage," he stated.

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

"Having heard a very massive number of specialists and having obtained the opinions of 10 (parliamentary) committees, the foreign affairs committee agrees with the federal government that Finland should apply for membership in NATO. This choice is unanimous," chairman Jussi Halla-aho told reporters.

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

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