Brussels is looking at how Helsinki prepares for crises, from pandemics to a potential Russian attack
HELSINKI – While Europe eyes stockpiling, Finland has been doing it for decades.
Since the 1920s, administrators in Helsinki has been building systems to make sure its citizens remain fed and the national economy can keep chugging along through war and natural disasters. What started with a granary for the military and government departments has expanded into a complex network of suppliers and systems designed to make sure there are sufficient stocks of essential goods, along with vaccines and grain.
After the pandemic and the launch of Russia’s all-out war on Ukraine, the EU has been looking closely at how it can kick-start such efforts across the continent. Finland, which shares a 1,300-kilometre border with Russia at the eastern fringes of the EU, offers the perfect template for the mechanics to making such initiatives work.
The wake-up call for the EU to prepare for crises came from a Finn – with a former president, Sauli Niinistö, unveiling in 2024 an eponymous report on the matter aimed at informing policymaking.
