Browsing by Subject "defense"

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 caused an immediate shift in the global order, especially regarding the security situation in Europe. Subsequently, Finland was forced to reexamine its traditional position of military non-alignment due to heightened security concerns, and in May 2022, applied to join the North Atlantic Treaty Association (NATO). These events have propelled Finland closer to the United States of America and have resulted in a relationship between the two countries that is closer now than it ever has been before. The changing relationship between Finland and the U.S. warrants research, in particular due to the fact that historical research on the relationship is lacking. Finland and the U.S. have deep historical roots and significantly, important defense ties which span decades, and which have supported Finland’s ability to defend itself. Finland also has a historically extensive partnership with NATO, which has provided it with avenues to build its relationship with the U.S. Investigating how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to further developments in American-Finnish cooperation serves to shed light on the relationship between the two countries. This thesis analyzes 21 official sources of communication coming from the top of the American government to examine the following question: how is the American government’s strategic perspective of Finland defined following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? Through constructivist discourse analysis and the employment of a securitization lens, the findings demonstrate that the American government strategic perspective of Finland in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is defined by two points: Finland benefits U.S. security and Finland promotes U.S. values.