World order

In January, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stated that we no longer live in the same world order. Great powers can arbitrarily act outside the rules of the international system. In light of current examples, this is hardly surprising to many. The wars, trade wars, and threats led by the United States under Trump, the war crimes committed by Putin's Russia, and China's arbitrary trade manipulation all illustrate how major powers operate beyond established rules. Cooperation between states is no longer based on shared rules, but rather on who holds the most power.

We can no longer rely on the old and familiar world order. Smaller states, such as Finland, cannot succeed by conducting foreign policy alone with great powers. Finland must cooperate with smaller and medium-sized partners that rely on rules—such as the Nordic countries and Canada—in order to have genuine influence in its foreign policy. While it is encouraging to see President Stubb at the same table with European leaders and Trump, these meetings will not benefit us unless we engage in close cooperation with other European countries and Canada as a counterbalance to Trump's authoritarian foreign policy. Values have not yet completely lost their place in foreign policy.

The question is: what kind of values do we want to bring into our foreign policy? In bilateral negotiations with great powers, we cannot act alone, as values are easily sidelined in such settings. By uniting European efforts, we can position ourselves so that democracy, human rights, and workers' rights become central elements of international relations. A world shaken by wars, great-power rivalry for hegemony, and an unstable global economy gives no reason to relegate values to a secondary role in foreign policy. This also applies to defense policy, where Finland holds an important position in, for example, NATO and the Coalition of the Willing. Through defense policy, we can demonstrate how strong national defense and active diplomacy go hand in hand. Our NATO partners are likely to take note of this.

However, realism cannot be entirely overlooked. Under President Stubb's leadership, Finland has positioned itself in an exceptionally strong place. EU and NATO membership have also strengthened our position. Values must have a place at the tables to which realism has brought us. Cynicism based solely on realpolitik cannot define Finland's foreign policy. Finland has traditionally promoted peace, diplomacy, and human rights. Thanks to our geographical position, we understand the actions of great powers better than many other countries. We recognize that Russia's willingness to negotiate is not as strong as Trump might wish to believe. At the JEF meeting, it was noted that Ukraine's peace process has effectively stalled.

This is why we have a reason to be present at these major tables. Global politics never stand still, and therefore must be addressed with all available means through value-based realism. The number of crises is unlikely to decrease in the future—on the contrary, they are likely to become even more frequent.

Eino Koskinen, President of Social Democratic Youth in Southwest Finland

Janne Tikkanen, Board memberg of the Social Democratic Youth in Southwest Finland