The Commander of the Finnish Defence Forces, General Timo Kivinen, will participate in the meeting of the commanders of the armed forces of the JEF countries on Friday 16 September and in the meeting of the NATO Military Committee in Tallinn, Estonia, on 16–18 September.
At the meeting of the Military Committee, the chiefs of defence of NATO member countries and now, for the first time, the chiefs of defence of the Finland and Sweden participate as observer members in the entire programme. In addition to the Commander of the Defence Forces, Finland's military representative to the EU and NATO, Major General Mikko Heiskanen, will participate in the meetings.
At a meeting of the NATO Military Committee, the chiefs of defence will discuss the military-strategic development of the alliance and discuss the implementation of the decisions of the NATO summit in Madrid. The commanders will also discuss NATO's ongoing operations and tasks, such as NATO operations in Iraq (NMI) and Kosovo (KFOR), in which Finland will also participate.
(Additional information about the meeting: https://www.nato.int/cps/sn/natohq/news_206916.htm)
The Military Committee (MC) is responsible for NATO's highest military decision-making and prepares military councils for the North Atlantic Council (NAC). Together with the North Atlantic Council, the military committee is one of the alliance's most important working bodies. The Committee meets regularly with representatives of the armed forces of the Member States and three times a year with the commanders of the armed forces. The chairman of the NATO Military Committee is the highest military person in the defense alliance.
On Friday 16 September, General Kivinen will participate in a meeting with the commanders of the JEF armed forces in Estonia. (More information about JEF cooperation:
https://puolustusvoimat.fi/en/international-activities/jef-cooperation)
