Finland’s parliament votes yes to NATO

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

President Sauli Niinisto and the federal government decided officially 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 in opposition to the applying, Speaker Matti Vanhanen said.

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International Minister Pekka Haavisto said the decision was no cause to have fun as a result of "there is conflict in Europe".

"Finland's membership in NATO is not going to change our basic considering that we are going to at all times seek peaceful options and we are a peace-loving nation that will at the start search diplomatic options to each conflict," he said in the course of 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 decision with a counter proposal resulting in it being put to the vote.

"Our border would turn out to be the border between the army alliance and Russia. New tensions wouldn't be a danger only through the utility course of however slightly a new and permanent situation of our foreign and security coverage," he mentioned.

Early on Tuesday, the international affairs committee decided to affix the state leadership in proposing to parliament that the Nordic nation ought to apply for membership.

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

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

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