Finland’s parliament votes yes to NATO

HELSINKI, May 17 (Reuters) - Finland's parliament on Tuesday overwhelmingly permitted a proposal to use for membership of the NATO army 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 choice was pending parliament's approval.

Of the 200 lawmakers, 188 voted in favour and eight towards the application, Speaker Matti Vanhanen stated.

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International Minister Pekka Haavisto said the choice was no reason to have a good time because "there is war in Europe".

"Finland's membership in NATO is not going to change our fundamental considering that we'll all the time seek peaceable options and we are a peace-loving nation that will firstly search diplomatic options to each battle," he said throughout the debate.

Opponents to the appliance 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 turn out to be the border between the military alliance and Russia. New tensions wouldn't be a danger only in the course of the application course of however reasonably a new and permanent condition of our foreign and safety coverage," he mentioned.

Early on Tuesday, the foreign affairs committee determined to affix the state management in proposing to parliament that the Nordic country should apply for membership.

"Having heard a very large variety of experts and having obtained the opinions of 10 (parliamentary) committees, the overseas affairs committee agrees with the federal government that Finland ought to apply for membership in NATO. This choice is unanimous," chairman Jussi Halla-aho instructed reporters.

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

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