Finland was actively involved in the process to develop a Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and was among the first group of states to endorse the Political Declaration in Dublin in November 2022.
Finland regularly delivered statements throughout the consultations towards a Political Declaration, as well as raising concerns around explosive weapons in populated areas and expressing support for a Political Declaration in other multilateral forums. Early in the consultation process Finland suggested that the declaration include considerations of the environmental effects of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas 1 and suggested the addition of a reference to binding obligations to protect hospitals and demilitarised zones, and for the evacuation of civilians. 2 During the consultations, Finland also emphasised the need to include “all vulnerable groups” within provisions regarding victim assistance 3 and to recognise the gendered impacts of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. 4 The importance of international humanitarian law (IHL) was also a repeated theme in Finland’s statements to the consultations, where it stressed the importance of specifying that all parties to a given conflict, including non-state actors, are bound by IHL 5 that suggested the focus of the consultations should be on the full and effective implementation of IHL. 6 At the signing ceremony in Dublin in November 2022, Finland welcomed the declaration’s strong call for full and effective implementation of IHL as a means to protect civilians and to avoid and minimise civilian harm in military operations. Finland reiterated that it is critical that the declaration raises the importance of an integrated, gender-sensitive and non-discriminatory approach, and acknowledges the rights of persons with disabilities and their assistance. 7
Statements and positions
Finland has repeatedly aligned with other states to deliver statements on explosive weapons in populated areas at the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly First Committee. It has signed onto joint statements by the Nordic Group at the UN Security Council open debate on the protection of civilians in armed conflict that have repeatedly drawn attention to the importance of adhering to IHL and avoiding the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. 8 In these statements, the Nordic Group has frequently highlighted the use of explosive weapons in populated areas as an issue that requires immediate attention, including through robust data collection on its impact and the sharing of policies and practices to prevent the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. The Group’s statement to the open debate on protection of civilians in 2024 highlighted the widespread and reverberating harm caused by the destruction of critical infrastructure, welcomed initiatives to provide a more nuanced understanding of how patterns and types of harm affect different groups, identified the Political Declaration as a concrete tool to minimise such harm effectively. 9 At the UN General Assembly First Committee debate in 2025, the Group emphasised “the great risks to civilians and civilian infrastructure” posed by use of explosive weapons in populated areas, and encouraged states to endorse the Political Declaration. 10 Expressing similar concerns at First Committee in 2024, the Group underlined the key role of the Political Declaration and said that “if fully implemented, it can improve the way we conduct military operations and ensure compliance with IHL”. 11 At the 2022 UN Security Council open debate on War in Cities, the Nordic Countries jointly called on all parties to conflict to prevent civilian harm resulting from use of explosive weapons in populated areas, especially those with wide area effects. 12
As a member of the European Union (EU), Finland has also signed onto numerous joint statements condemning the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and the harms it causes to civilians and civilian objects, as well as calling for greater IHL compliance and welcoming the Political Declaration. This includes at several UN Security Council open debates on the protection of civilians in armed conflict 13, including in 2024 when it expressed deep concern about the use and humanitarian consequences of explosive weapons in populated areas ‘which has significant civilian impact and should thus be restricted and avoided’ 14 as well as at the 2022 UN Security Council open debate on war in cities where the EU expressed concern over the indiscriminate use of explosive weapons in populated areas, including near hospitals, schools, and universities 15 and at the UN General Assembly’s First Committee. 16 Finland also aligned with the World Humanitarian Summit Core Commitments to ‘Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity’ as an EU member state in May 2016. This included the commitment “to promote and enhance the protection of civilians and civilian objects, especially in the conduct of hostilities, for instance by working to prevent civilian harm resulting from the use of wide-area explosive weapons in populated areas, and by sparing civilian infrastructure from military use in the conduct of military operations.” 17
In 2018 and 2019, Finland joined some 50 and 71 states respectively to endorse joint statements on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas at the UN General Assembly First Committee, calling attention to the devastating and long-lasting humanitarian impact of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and urging states to reverse the trend of high levels of civilian harm. 18
Implementation of the Political Declaration
Finland attended the first international implementation conference on the Political Declaration in Oslo, Norway in April 2024, and the second implementation conference in San Jose, Costa Rica in November 2025.
In Oslo, during the session on Military Policies and Practices, Finland expressed its commitment to “the full and effective implementation” of the Political Declaration. The country’s statement focused specifically on defensive activities, stating that its Defence Forces have a “comprehensive approach” in its “practices to avoid and minimise civilian harm, whilst maintaining preparedness to defend all of Finland’s territory against an aggressor.” Herein, it identified an effective public warning system, proactive evacuation of populated areas, and effective cooperation between the Defence Forces and civilian authorities are crucial steps to mitigate civilian harm. Finland also stated it has “a comprehensive set of safety criteria and regulations aimed towards mitigating incidental harm to civilians or civilian infrastructure.” Finland shared that it “has already taken extensive steps to implement the elements of the declaration”, but that there “is still need for reviewing and improving military policies and practices to protect civilians in conflict situations when necessary.” It concluded its remarks by suggesting that comparing and exchanging existing practices would be useful to improve national practices and better adapt to “changing contexts, adversaries as well as new technological developments.” 19 At the San Jose conference, Finland emphasised its cooperation with the Finnish Red Cross, as well as commitment to applying rigorous precautions in military operations including warnings, clearance and safe distances. 20
In February 2024, INEW and EWM conducted a survey into endorser states' national efforts to disseminate and implement the Political Declaration; and in May 2025 EWM conducted a second survey. 21 Responding to the surveys, Finland reported that it has disseminated the Declaration across the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), Ministry of Defence (MoD), and all branches of the Finnish Defence Forces (DF) including the Defence Command, Army, Navy and Air Force. The MFA, MoD and DF share responsibility for implementing the Declaration, with coordination responsibility held by the Unit for Arms Control at the MFA. Finland reported that it had conducted briefings, workshops or trainings on the content of the Declaration, stating that it had been included in detail in its International Humanitarian Law trainings which are conducted in cooperation with the Finnish Red Cross. 22
Finland stated that it has not conducted any revision of its laws, policies, codes, approaches, practices or similar since the adoption of the Political Declaration. It reported that “existing laws and policies were reviewed on a general level during the adoption process in order to confirm that there were no contradictions between them and the commitments of the declaration.” 25 It reported that rules of engagement are designed to minimise civilian harm – for example, by permitting observed but not unobserved fire and requiring positive target identification before engagement – and that operational planning considers these constraints, ensuring proportionality and limiting risk to civilians. 26
Finland also reported that it collects operational and technical data on testing and use of explosive weapons. This information is shared internally to assess compliance with humanitarian standards, evaluate risks to civilians, and inform national decision-making on weapon use. Finland’s data also contribute to European Union and NATO research cooperation on munitions safety and effects, including studies on blast impact and mitigation measures. Finland maintains detailed artillery and minefield logs that provide a precise record of weapons use for accountability, clearance, and harm reduction. 27