Finland’s parliament votes sure to NATO

HELSINKI, May 17 (Reuters) - Finland's parliament on Tuesday overwhelmingly authorised a proposal to use for membership of the NATO navy alliance in a historic coverage shift prompted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

President Sauli Niinisto and the government determined formally on Sunday that Finland would apply for membership however the decision was pending parliament's approval.

Of the 200 lawmakers, 188 voted in favour and eight against the applying, Speaker Matti Vanhanen mentioned.

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Overseas Minister Pekka Haavisto stated the decision was no reason to have fun because "there may be war in Europe".

"Finland's membership in NATO will not change our basic pondering that we will always seek peaceable options and we are a peace-loving nation that can initially search diplomatic options to every conflict," he said in the course of the debate.

Opponents to the applying included some lawmakers from the Left Alliance, part of Finland's five-party coalition, among them Markus Mustajarvi who challenged the decision with a counter proposal resulting in it being put to the vote.

"Our border would grow to be the border between the military alliance and Russia. New tensions would not be a risk solely throughout the application course of but moderately a brand new and everlasting situation of our overseas and security coverage," he said.

Early on Tuesday, the overseas affairs committee decided to affix the state management in proposing to parliament that the Nordic country should apply for membership.

"Having heard a very massive variety of experts and having obtained the opinions of 10 (parliamentary) committees, the international affairs committee agrees with the federal government that Finland ought to apply for membership in NATO. This resolution is unanimous," chairman Jussi Halla-aho told reporters.

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Reporting by Anne Kauranen; Modifying by Robert Birsel and Alison Williams

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