The UK and Finland have signed a Strategic Partnership to bolster European security against Russian aggression, support Ukraine, and tackle Russia’s shadow oil fleet. Here’s the full story.
Strategic Partnership
On Monday, the United Kingdom and Finland formalised a strengthened alliance by signing a Strategic Partnership agreement in London.
Growing Ties
The agreement, endorsed by UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron and Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen, reflected the growing ties between the two nations, especially following Finland’s recent ascension into NATO following the country’s growing concern posed by Russia’s expansionist ambitions in Ukraine.
Disinformation, Cyber Attacks and Hybrid Threats
The new Strategic Partnership set out both countries’ unwavering support for Ukraine as the Russian invasion of the beleaguered nation drags on into its second year. Both nations condemned Russia as the most significant threat to peace in Europe, stressing the need for ongoing efforts to counteract Russian disinformation, cyber attacks and hybrid threats.
“Going From Strength to Strength”
Cameron stated, “As long-standing partners and new NATO allies, the UK’s relationship with Finland is going from strength to strength. As we stand together to support Ukraine, including through providing military aid and training, we are clear that the threat of Russian aggression, following the war it started, will not be tolerated.”
“Bolster European Security”
He continued, “This Strategic Partnership, built on our shared values, will see the UK and Finland step up cooperation to bolster European security as well as seize new opportunities, from science and technology to closer energy ties.”
Supporting Ukraine
The partnership will support Ukraine’s recovery, reconstruction and modernisation post-conflict. As one of Ukraine’s leading donors, the UK has committed £12.5 billion in aid since February 2022, including £7.6 billion in military support.
Fighting Back
Cameron recently raised eyebrows internationally by suggesting that Ukraine has a right to strike inside Russia, which had previously been considered something of a faux pas by the international community.
“Defending Itself”
Cameron stated, “Just as Russia is striking inside Ukraine, you can quite understand why Ukraine feels the need to make sure it’s defending itself.”
Shadow Oil Fleet
Another significant aspect of the discussions between the UK and Finland was the immediate need to tackle Russia’s shadow oil fleet.
100 Oil Tankers
This fleet operates in the Baltic Sea and the English Channel and uses around 100 oil tankers with opaque ownership structures to transport oil to Russia, circumventing the sanctions placed on the country following its illegal invasion of Ukraine.
“Making Life Harder”
Valtonen stressed the importance of international cooperation, stating, “We are looking at several ways of making life harder for their ships, but also for those countries under whose flags they are operating.”
$60 Price Cap
The current $60 per barrel price cap on Russian oil, imposed in December 2022, has proven insufficient. This is primarily due to the shadow fleet’s evasion tactics, which include operating unsafe ships without insurance.
“We Need to Find Solution”
Valtonen stated, “We need to find solutions, not just as the EU, but collectively together with our partners and allies around the world to find ways effectively to put an end to this because it’s obviously not just an environmental risk, but also it’s a way for Russia to keep on exporting its oil and getting hard currency for its economy.”
Enforcing Maritime Laws
Despite Cameron and Valtonen’s stern words, enforcing maritime laws that would allow both countries to curb the activities of the shadow fleet will be anything but easy.
“Built for a Completely Different World”
Valtonen stated, “It’s just not very easy because international maritime law is basically geared towards opening navigation and making it very difficult for any country to intervene with free traffic. The law was built for a completely different world than what we are now looking at.”
“Effectively Prohibit Such Traffic”
However, she added, “We will make use of international organisations and also see to which extent the international maritime law allows us to effectively prohibit such traffic.”
830-Mile Border
Despite recently joining NATO, Finland is facing a series of destabilisation tactics from its Russian neighbour, with whom it shares an 830-mile border.
Border Closed
Russia has reportedly reacted to Finland’s closure of its border with Russia by forcing third-country nationals over the border to undermine Finland’s democratic stability.
“Hostile Towards Finland and the West”
Despite sustained criticism of Finland’s new border control measures, which critics have claimed violate the European Convention on Human Rights, Valtonen defended the legislation, stating, “We have evidence of Russia not only mobilising typically third-country citizens within their borders but also from within Russia towards our border. We can’t have an outside power, self-declared to be hostile towards Finland and the West, that decides on our behalf who is to enter Finland.”
“Counter This Aggression”
“So we have used these few months to draft legislation, which would allow us to more flexibly counter this aggression by Russia, and this legislation could indeed be used as a blueprint for the rest of Europe as well, because all border nations with Russia and Belarus are facing this.”
Significant Step
The new Strategic Partnership between the UK and Finland marks a significant step in reinforcing European security against the mounting threat of Russian aggression and ensuring that sanctions can be enforced despite Russian attempts to circumvent them.
Uncertain Future
However, whether this new partnership will be enough to hinder Russian attempts to destabilise Europe further as punishment for its ongoing support of Ukraine remains to be seen.
The post UK-Finland Strategic Pact Targets Russian Threats and Shadow Oil Fleet first appeared on Swift Feed.
Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / Alexandros Michailidis.