President Stubb’s @alexstubb tenure is challenged by the ministers’ relentless behavior and statements contradicting Finland’s foreign policy. The question is whether the ministers are current with their duties and responsibilities. How much more is the president of Finland kept in the dark?
Recently, the president of Finland, Stubb, scolded the Minister for Foreign Trade and Development, Ville Tavio, @villetavio, for his decision to exclude Finland from the equality alliance, which is also supposed to promote the issue of gender and sexual minorities in Ukraine.
The scolding is rare in Finnish politics and is considered severe when the president must correct the minister’s statements contrary to Finland’s foreign policy. In an interview, Stubb said it was a mistake for the president not to be informed about matters concerning Finland’s foreign and security policy. Whatever the case, the president is ultimately responsible for ministers’ statements while performing their official duties.
President Stubb favoring trade relations over saving lives.
In his interview in Politico on May 30, 2024, Ville Tavio said that trade relations with Israel are more important than the lives of the Palestinian children in Gaza. Thus far, Israel’s bombing and ground operations have killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, including thousands of children. After that statement and not being ‘scolded,’ Stubb seems to agree with Tavio, thus depicting that the statement aligns with Finland’s foreign policy.
However, these incidents will unlikely affect the president’s term. Also, given Finland’s current foreign policy, which aligns closely with the U.S., Stubb and Tavio will hardly have any consequences.
President’s show of favoritism and prejudice.
Recent events in the Middle East show that Finland’s policy closely follows the U.S. The EU’s and Finland’s refusal to take direct action against Israel depicts its partiality in the conflict. With the escalation of the dispute over to Lebanon and the killing of some key personnel of Hezbollah and Iran’s government, Israel provoked Iran to launch massive missile strikes on Israel on October 1, 2024.
As a result of that escalation, on Friday, 4 October, the President of Finland and the Ministerial Committee convened to discuss Finland’s Middle East policy and the situation therein. In a public announcement, Finland condemned Iran’s missile attack on Israel. However, some may criticize Finland for not mentioning Israel’s share in the strike, as Israel’s actions may have provoked Iran to carry out the attack. This aligns with the U.S. official policy of protecting Israel and condemning the rest.