Finland

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Santa Claus Has Neighbors and They Aren't Feeling Jolly

Santa's alleged home in Finland isn't hard for tourists to find, but it probably is hard to find parking

(Newser) - In a once-quiet town on the edge of the Arctic Circle, a whimsical marketing campaign has snowballed into a full-blown identity crisis, and it's all due to one very merry resident and lots and lots of tourists. The New York Times reports that the Finnish town of Rovaniemi has...

Finland Will Pull Out of Global Landmine Treaty

Other countries are set to do the same

(Newser) - Finland on Tuesday announced it will pull out of a global landmine treaty—a move made "as Russia fears grow," reports Politico . Politico reports the 1997 Ottawa Convention "has come under increasing pressure because of the Kremlin's war on Ukraine, especially in countries neighboring Russia."...

This Is the Happiest Nation on Earth
This Is the Happiest
Nation on Earth
Mar 20, 2025 12:50 PM CDT

This Is the Happiest Nation on Earth

Finland tops World Happiness Report for 8th straight year; US comes in at No. 24

(Newser) - Feeling down in the dumps? Maybe it's your country. Unless you're in Finland, which just took the top spot on this year's World Happiness Report for the eighth year straight, reports CNN . The annual ranking used Gallup World Poll data from more than 140 countries around the...

Finland Seizes Tanker Tied to Russia Over Cut Cable

Eagle S is part of Russia's sanction-dodging shadow fleet, EU and Finnish officials say

(Newser) - Police in Finland said they stopped, boarded, and took over the command bridge of an oil tanker in the Baltic Sea on Thursday that's suspected of involvement in the destruction of an underwater power cable. The Eagle S is being held in Finnish territorial waters, the AP reports. Finnish...

Sabotage Suspected After 2 Cables in Baltic Sea Are Cut
Chinese Ship Suspected
in Baltic Cable Sabotage
UPDATED
Nov 21, 2024 11:36 AM CST

Chinese Ship Suspected in Baltic Cable Sabotage

Yi Peng 3 being monitored by Danish navy

(Newser) - Swedish authorities have labeled a Chinese ship "part of the sphere of interest" after two fiber-optic cables were cut in the Baltic Sea. The Yi Peng 3 is believed to have passed over the undersea cables around the times they were severed on Sunday and Monday, the Guardian reports....

Nordic Nations Release War Prep Pamphlets

As Russia-Ukraine war rages on, Sweden, Norway, Finland issue advice on how to prep themselves

(Newser) - "Keep this brochure in a safe place." That's the directive on a 32-page document that will be distributed in Sweden starting on Monday, warning citizens that "we live in uncertain times" and that the booklet issued by the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency, or MSB, will help...

Crews Solve Mystery of Plane Downed by Soviets in 1940

American courier aboard was one of the first US casualties of World War II

(Newser) - The World War II mystery of what happened to a Finnish passenger plane after it was shot down over the Baltic Sea by Soviet bombers appears to finally be solved more than eight decades later. The plane was carrying American and French diplomatic couriers in June 1940 when it was...

Cops: 12-Year-Old School Shooter Claims Bullying

One student was killed, 2 seriously injured after suspect opened fire in southern Finland, per police

(Newser) - During Finland's day of mourning after the school shooting that left one student dead and two others seriously injured, more details are emerging on the 12-year-old suspected shooter. Officials there said Wednesday that the alleged shooter is a sixth grader who said he'd been bullied, reports the AP...

Estonia Warns of Russian Border Buildup

Country's intelligence service says Kremlin expects clash with NATO within 10 years

(Newser) - "Russia has chosen a path which is a long-term confrontation," the head of Estonia's Foreign Intelligence Service warned Tuesday. Kaupo Rosin said Russia plans to double the number of troops it has stationed near its borders with NATO members in northern Europe, and the "Kremlin is...

Finland Picks a Former Prime Minister

Alexander Stubb to lead foreign and security policy for new NATO member

(Newser) - Former Prime Minister Alexander Stubb won Finland's presidential election runoff on Sunday against ex-Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto in a close race between two experienced politicians for the post of head of state. His main task will be to steer the Nordic country's foreign and security policy now that...

Finland Sends Ex-Leader to Runoff
Finland Sends
Ex-Leader to Runoff
Jan 28, 2024 3:50 PM CST

Finland Sends Ex-Leader to Runoff

Alexander Stubb will meet former foreign minister in race for president

(Newser) - Former Prime Minister Alexander Stubb won the first round of Finland's presidential election on Sunday and will face ex-Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, the runner-up, in a runoff next month. The vote centered on the Nordic nation's new role as a NATO front-line country with Russia and the security...

Finland, Sweden Are Seeing Record Freezing Temps

Just another day in frigid paradise on Tuesday as cold snap puts Nordic countries on blast

(Newser) - Finland and Sweden recorded the coldest temperatures of the winter Tuesday as thermometers plummeted to minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit as a result of a cold spell prevailing in the Nordic region. In Nikkaluokta, a small village inhabited by the Indigenous Sami people in northern Sweden, thermometers showed temps of minus...

Putin Rips Biden Warning on Fighting NATO as 'Nonsense'

Finland is problematic, though, Putin says

(Newser) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has pushed back against President Biden's suggestions that if the invasion of Ukraine succeeds, NATO countries will be attacked next. "Russia has no reason, no interest—no geopolitical interest, neither economic, political nor military—to fight with NATO countries," Putin said. He made...

'Russia Started This': Finland Closes Border Crossings

Country of 5.6M accuses Russia of sending migrants without visas to its borders

(Newser) - Finland says Russia is sending hundreds of migrants from African and Middle Eastern countries across its border illegally and has closed all but one border crossing in response. Finland closed four of eight land border crossings last week, but reported "organized" crossings had continued and expanded north. It now...

This Is the Most Innovative Nation on Earth

Switzerland is No. 1, again, while the US falls one spot

(Newser) - Monday has already proven a banner day for innovation, with the Nobel Prize in medicine bestowed on Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman for their work that helped develop the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines. Now, certain nations around the world can crow about their placement on the World Intellectual Property Organization's...

Cleaning Up Deputy Mayor's Graffiti Cost City $3.8K

Helsinki's Paavo Arhinmaki apologizes for 'stupid fooling around'

(Newser) - A deputy mayor of Finland's capital is facing possible legal action, as well as calls to resign and pay compensation for damages, after he was caught red-handed spray-painting graffiti in a railway tunnel last weekend. The Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency told public broadcaster YLE on Wednesday that cleaning up...

His Fine for Speeding: $129K
Driver's
Fine for
Speeding:
$129K
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jun 10, 2023 4:30 PM CDT

Driver's Fine for Speeding: $129K

The problem here for Anders Wiklof is that he is wealthy and lives in Finland

(Newser) - The minimum fine for speeding in Finland is 6 euros. The maximum? That's a much different story, because Finland uses a progressive system pegged to a driver's wealth, explains Euro News . Which is how the very wealthy Anders Wiklof just received a fine of 121,000 euros, or...

Newspaper Gets Creative to Inform Russians About War

Finnish paper hides news about Ukraine in a popular video game available to Russians

(Newser) - Finland's biggest daily newspaper has found a creative way to inform Russians about the war in Ukraine, reports Reuters . Knowing that Moscow censors any news about the war, the Helsingin Sanomat turned to the world of video games. The popular game "Counter-Strike" encourages users to create their own...

Report: Russia Is Spying With Civilian Boats

Nordic public broadcasters say they've uncovered spying program in the North Sea

(Newser) - A joint investigation by the public broadcasters of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland has uncovered a large fleet of Russian spy ships allegedly posing as fishing vessels in the North Sea. The broadcasters—DR in Denmark, NRK in Norway, SVT in Sweden, and Yle in Finland—say about 50 Russian...

Finland Starts Work on Russian Border Fence
Finland Begins
Fencing Off Russia
Apr 15, 2023 1:20 PM CDT

Finland Begins Fencing Off Russia

New NATO member says invasion of Ukraine was the main prompt

(Newser) - The construction of barbed-wired fence along Finland’s long border with Russia—primarily meant to curb illegal migration—has broken ground near the southeastern town of Imatra less than two weeks after the Nordic country joined NATO as the 31st member of the military alliance. The Finnish Border Guard on...

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