The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Parliament of Finland has requested the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA) to conduct a study on Finland’s participation in crisis management, stabilization, reconstruction, development cooperation, and in humanitarian support functions in Afghanistan during 2001-2021.
The inquiry will be conducted as a priority project during the period of 15.12.2021-15.12.2022. It will be independently conducted by FIIA without any external political or institutional supervision. The project will be based on a rigorous and systematic tracing of Finland’s participation in Afghanistan through a thorough review and analysis of existing documents and previous research as well as primary data collection in the form of interviews.
The analysis considers Finland’s comprehensive approach (including the triple nexus) as well as the EU’s integrated approach to conflicts and crises as its starting point. The study examines the construction of this comprehensive approach and its realization in the context of Afghanistan. The study will not only refine the picture and timeline regarding the participation of Finland, but also focuses on how the overall participation and its various components were motivated and justified. Furthermore, it explores what types of aims and theories of change guided the different forms of participation, how these shifted over time, and how these were implemented.
The nature of the research is future oriented. The core aim of the study is to produce lessons learned that inform Finland’s foreign and security policy and can be applied in future crisis and conflict situations.
The Finnish Institute of International Affairs produces high-quality, topical information on international relations and Finland’s position in the ever-changing world. By conducting research, the Institute aims to support fact-based decision-making and public debate.
The Foreign Affairs Committee deals with significant treaties, as well as matters pertaining to general foreign and security policy, foreign trade policy, development cooperation, and international organisations. The Committee’s remit also includes matters relating to the dispatching of Finnish peace-keeping troops and the joint foreign and security policy of the European Union.
Further information:
Director Mika Aaltola
FIIA
mika.aaltola@fiia.fi
p. +358 9 432 7701
Committee Counsel Tiina Larvala
Foreign Affairs Committee, Parliament of Finland
p. 050 598 0106, 09 432 2105