Finnish authorities have explained the air raid alert issued in the capital region

The Finnish government stated that the decision to issue an air raid alert in the region surrounding the capital was justified due to a real threat. The authorities emphasized that this was not an overreaction, but a necessary step to ensure public safety in the face of potential threats.

According to Yle, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo and Defense Minister Antti Hykkänen made these remarks. 

Orpo believes that the official decisions regarding the air raid alert were not an overreaction. 

"If there is a clear risk that a drone carrying a warhead could end up over the most densely populated part of Finland—I don’t think raising the alert level can be considered an ‘overreaction,’" the prime minister said, adding that the warning was exactly what the situation required. 

"This demonstrates that we have learned from the previous incident, and the measures taken were appropriate for the situation," he noted.

At the same time, Orpo acknowledged that communication “has room for improvement” and that people need to receive clearer instructions on what they can and cannot do. “It is clear that the new SMS alert system needs to be launched immediately,” the prime minister added. 

Defense Minister Antti Hykkänen noted that although the threat did not materialize, the risk was real, as it involved large drones equipped with warheads. “So the warning to the public was quite straightforward to ensure the message was clear and unambiguous,” he said. 

Kari Nissula, Chief of Operations for the Finnish Defense Forces, noted that Finland received advance warning of the approaching drones and acted based on a risk assessment. 

"It’s good that this time we received information about the potential risks of drones ‘straying’ into Finnish territory," Nisula said, refraining from specifying whether the warning came from Kyiv or by other means. 

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