Military equipment and personnel during the mechanised Arrow 24 military exercise at the Niinisalo Garrison in Kankaanpää, Finland, on 29 April 2024. The value of Finnish arms exports rose to an over 20-year high in 2023, following a roughly 33-per-cent jump from the previous year, reports Safer Globe, a Helsinki-based independent think tank. (Emmi Korhonen – Lehtikuva)
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THE VALUE of Finnish arms exports hit an over 20-year high in 2023, reports STT.
Safer Globe, a Helsinki-based independent think tank, on Monday published its annual monitoring report, revealing that the value of arms exports rose by 80 million euros from the previous year to 333 million euros in 2023.
The total is a new high in statistics compiled by the think tank, which date back to 2002.
Safer Globe revealed that military equipment accounted for 192 million euros and civilian firearms 141 million euros of the total. Europe was the leading market for military equipment, as it had been the previous year, accounting for four-fifths of the exports. Sweden imported 51 million euros, Latvia 34 million euros and Lithuania 19 million euros worth of Finnish military equipment.
Non-EU countries, by contrast, accounted for the majority of civilian firearms exports from Finland. Over a third, or 52 million euros, of the exports were to the US, 15 million euros to Canada and nine million euros to Australia.
According to Safer Globe, Finland granted export licences to military equipment worth a total of 667 million euros in 2023, representing a nearly 100-per-cent increase on the previous record in its statistics dating back to 2002. Slovakia made up 201 million euros, Japan 154 million euros and Ukraine 88 million euros of the total value of licences.
Export licences worth about 400,000 euros were granted to Israel. The licences fall into the category that incorporates armoured and protective equipment, protective structures and protective components.
Finnish arms exports to Israel were valued at 45,000 euros in 2023.
Safer Globe was founded in 2010 to produce information and develop tools for promoting sustainable peace and security.
Aleksi Teivainen – HT
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Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi
