The Finnish Army has chaired the Finabel Coordination Committee, a European cooperation organisation, as of 11 April 2017, and this one-year-long chairship will now culminate in the summit organised in Helsinki 9-10 April 2018.
During the Finnish chairship, the thematic focus has been on the Army as part of the comprehensive security in society as well as the future perspectives for the European Union Battle Groups. The themes of Finland’s chairship will be particularly addressed in the presentations, panels and discussions featured in the summit.
In a ceremony organised during the summit, Finland will in turn hand its rotating chairship over to Malta.
Founded in 1953, Finabel is tasked with developing the operational interoperability of the European Armies, standardize procedures and doctrines as well as promote mutual understanding concerning defence-related issues. With altogether 22 countries as its member nations, the permanent secretariat of Finabel is located in Brussels. The Finnish Army joined the Finabel network in the year 2008.
Cooperation within Finabel is implemented in working groups convened by the rotating chair nation a couple of times per year. This operating in working groups allows for exchanging experiences and considering practical steps to be taken in order to facilitate further the European Armies’ interoperability.
Furthermore, Finabel produces and publishes research papers, manuals and guidelines that are closely connected to its member nations’ practices and procedures. This work is implemented under the supervision of the annual meeting of the Commanders of Armies of the member nations.
