Just three weeks ago, the Finnish government approved the sale of drones to Turkey. But after Turkey today launched an offensive against Kurdish targets in northeastern Syria, our Baltic Sea neighbor is reacting strongly.

Now Finland stops all arms exports to Turkey - at the same time condemning the Turkish military offensive. It reports Finnish Yle.

Sharp criticism

Finnish Defense Minister Antti Kaikkonen formulated sharply on Twitter:

“The situation is serious. For my own area of ​​responsibility, I note the following: Finland does not export defense materials to countries that war or violate human rights. "

Condemnation from the Prime Minister

Prime Minister Antti Rinne says in a press release that Finland supports the EU's condemnation of the offensive and confirms that all arms exports are stopped.

He also expresses concern that Turkey's actions will exacerbate the situation in Syria.

In 2018, Sweden exported military equipment for SEK 299 million to Turkey according to the Inspection for Strategic Products.