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  "path": "/news/world/finland-lifts-long-standing-ban-nuclear-weapons",
  "publishedAt": "2026-06-17T20:55:34.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.gbnews.com",
  "tags": [
    "'We will come after you!' Keir Starmer issues warning as UK hands out record £1million Russia sanctions fine",
    "Keir Starmer says Russian warship 'reckless' but not 'sinister' for firing shots at pensioners",
    "WATCH IN FULL: Keir Starmer grilled by GB News in G7 Summit sit down",
    "The GB News Editorial Charter"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\nFinland has voted to lift its long-standing ban on nuclear weapons in a historic move to bring Helsinki closer to Nato.\n\nLawmakers voted by a margin of 125 to 61 to lift the ban, clearing the way for Finland to receive, transport and otherwise facilitate the movement of nuclear weapons on its territory.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nSupporters of the legislation says the former restriction no longer fit the country’s role inside Nato.\n\nDefense Minister Antti Häkkänen said the move was \"essential\" for Finland’s security, but added Helsinki had no plans to permanently station nuclear arms on its soil.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nTRENDING\n\nStories\n\nVideos\n\nYour Say\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nHe said: \"The Parliament approved the amendment to the Nuclear Energy Act with a strong 2/3 majority. This historic reform strengthens the security of Finland and of Nato as a whole.\"\n\nFinland joined Nato in 2023 and shares more than 1,300 kilometers of border with Russia.\n\nMr Häkkänen argued that the country’s nuclear restrictions, dating back to 1980, no longer reflected the geopolitical realities facing a Nato member.\n\nHe said the issue had required years of discussions with allies and nuclear powers over how Finland could best strengthen its security within the alliance, reports Politico.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nNew images have revealed Russia is expanding its military presence on the border with Finland and neighbouring Norway construction work such as new barracks, warehouses, and army vehicles.\n\nThe images, released by Danish broadcaster DR, highlighting five military bases in Russia which had been expanded since 2024.\n\nThese include Pechenga, just over miles from Norway, Kandalaksha, bordering Finland, Luga, near Estonia, Kaliningrad, in between Poland and Lithuania, and Petrozavodsk, near Finland.\n\nA spokesman for the Russian Ministry of Defence has already confirmed the number of troops stationed at Pechenga would expand.\n\n### LATEST DEVELOPMENTS\n\n\n\n\n  * 'We will come after you!' Keir Starmer issues warning as UK hands out record £1million Russia sanctions fine\n  * Keir Starmer says Russian warship 'reckless' but not 'sinister' for firing shots at pensioners\n  * WATCH IN FULL: Keir Starmer grilled by GB News in G7 Summit sit down\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nAcross Finland, tensions and security concerns remain high, given the large land border and proximity to Saint Petersberg.\n\nBack in May, Finnish authorities were quick to deploy fighter jets after a suspected drone entered airspace near Helsinki.\n\nPresident Alexander Stubb later said Finland had faced \"no direct military threat\" in the incident.\n\nMeanwhile military officials revealed they had received advance intelligence warning of the incident.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nAt this week's G7, Donald Trump described Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin as \"neutral\" during the war with Iran, saying they had not thwarted his efforts to curb Tehran's nuclear ambitions.\n\nPresident Trump's comments stood in contrast to his comments on US allies from Japan to Europe, whom he has criticised for not helping with the military operation or subsequent efforts to clear the Strait of Hormuz, the Iran-blocked maritime trade route.\n\nMoscow and Beijing maintain close ties with Tehran, with the Kremlin claiming the war could lead to a nuclear arms race in the Middle East.\n\nBeijing has condemned Washington's attacks on Tehran as a brazen violation of the country's sovereignty.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nUS intelligence officials assess that Beijing supplied Tehran with goods with potential military uses, according to people familiar with the matter.\n\nChina's independent oil refiners have been Iran's main customers during the conflict, defying US sanctions.\n\nBut Mr Trump said that President Xi was helpful to resolving the conflict, and avoided sending in \"big weaponry\" or shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles.\n\n\"They could have sent in an oil ship with six destroyers alongside of it, on each side. They didn't do that. President Xi helped me. He tried to help, and I think he probably helped get it solved,\" President Trump said.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n**Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter**",
  "title": "Finland lifts long-standing ban on having nuclear weapons in historic move"
}