FIIA celebrates its 60th anniversary. Geo-economic risk will be discussed in an upcoming webinar. FIIA takes part in Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit 2021.
FIIA celebrates its 60th anniversary
This year the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA) celebrates a double anniversary. The Institute was established by the Parliament of Finland in its centennial plenum in June 2006. From 1961 to 2006 FIIA functioned as an independent research institute run by a private foundation.
The Institute’s theme year started on the 1st of June, 2021 with a seminar: “FIIA and the changing world – a discussion of Finland’s role and future”. The seminar speakers were Under-Secretary of State Kai Sauer, former Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen, Director Mika Aaltola and Senior Research Fellow Sinikukka Saari. The speeches were followed by a panel discussion on the theme “Finland in the world in the 2030s”. The panelists were FIIA’s researchers Mariette Hägglund, Veera Laine, Katariina Mustasilta and Matti Pesu. The discussion was moderated by Head of Research Communications Maria Annala. A recording (in Finnish) of the event is available on FIIA’s YouTube channel.
Webinar 17 June: Recognizing ’Geoeconomic Risk’: Rethinking Risk Management for the Era of Great Power Competition
On June 17 FIIA will organize the webinar Recognizing ’Geoeconomic Risk’: Rethinking Risk Management for the Era of Great Power Competition.
The present day great-power contest between the United States and China is not fought on the traditional battlefield, but in the global economy. Economics has become a strategic means whereby both the US and China attempt to control the economic networks and links that connect the world. For companies around the world it introduces a new source of business risk – what can be called ‘geoeconomic risk’.
Registration to marie-louise.hindsberg@fiia.fi by Tuesday 15 June.
FIIA takes part in Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit 2021
The Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit conference will be organized November 16-17 in collaboration with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, the Finnish Institute of International Affairs and the Arctic Society of Finland. Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit is Finland’s main regular international Arctic conference, organized biannually since 2013. In the conference FIIA will be responsible for arranging events on Arctic security policy.
Read more on the Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit website.
Discussion on Strategic Autonomy and the transformation of the EU, 28 April
The webinar “Strategic Autonomy and the transformation of the EU” was held on 28 April 2021. A recording of the event is available on FIIA’s YouTube channel. Read also the FIIA report Strategic Autonomy and the Transformation of the EU: New agendas for Security, Diplomacy, Trade and Technology that analyses the EU’s actions and options across several policy domains.
Discussion on Regional Security Dialogue was held on 26 May
2025 will mark the 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Accords. The webinar “Regional Security Dialogue – What is the Nordic contribution?” was held on May 26. The webinar was organized in cooperation with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, CMI – Martti Ahtisaari Peace Foundation and Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). A recording of the event is available on FIIA’s YouTube channel.
Staff News
Senior Research Fellow Jyrki Kallio has been awarded the Title of Docent in International Relations and Chinese Studies by the University of Lapland.
Senior Research Fellow Marco Siddi has been awarded the Title of Docent in Global Politics by the University of Helsinki.
Research Fellow Maria Annala has been appointed as Head of Research Communications at FIIA till the end of 2022.
Recent publications
All FIIA publications are available on the FIIA website. Listed below are some of the latest publications.
Covid-19 effects on peace and conflict dynamics: The need for prevention prevails by Katariina Mustasilta
Protecting the environment during armed conflict: From principles to implementation by Emma Hakala and Freek van der Vet
The latest issues of the Finnish Journal of Foreign Affairs (in Finnish)
The latest issue of the Finnish Journal of Foreign Affairs deals with the evolution of the intelligence community and emerging threats, such as cyber espionage and crimes. The need for intelligence information has once again become essential. Traditional intelligence agencies have lost their monopoly, while activists, companies and non-governmental agencies are developing new tools or uncovering the plots of authoritarian states. Eliot Higgins, founder of investigative network Bellingcat, opens up about his views and goals in the profile interview. In this issue we also observe Russia in the light of EU’s Russia policy, Baltic states’ goals, and the nature of Russian youths’ digital activism. Olli Ruohomäki, non-Resident Senior Fellow of FIIA, evaluates Afghanistan’s prospects and recounts his first-hand experience of the Taleban in an essay.
You can access the journal at www.ulkopolitiikka.fi (in Finnish).
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