Finland–United States relations

The United States of America and the Republic of Finland currently have good relations. The United States recognized Finland on May 7, 1919 after it declared independence in 1917, and officially established diplomatic relations in 1920. Due to World War II and Soviet pressure, relations were suspended between 1942 and 1945 before being raised to embassy level in 1954. Finland has been of strategic importance to the United States due to its position bordering the Soviet Union and later Russia, and after the end of the Cold War in 1991 Finland's shift to the West has led to warmer relations. There is significant trade activity, including military procurement, between the two countries.

The United States supported Finland's NATO membership during Finland's accession into NATO, which was finalized on 4 April 2023, and later that year, the two countries entered into a Defense Cooperation Agreement. Currently, both countries are members of NATO and the Arctic Council. The United States is an observer of the BEAC and CBSS while Finland is a member of them.

In 1776, an important Signer of the United States Declaration of Independence, John Morton, was the descendant of early Finnish pioneers who had founded New Sweden colony on the Delaware in 1638. Ethnic Finns, including “Forest Finns” who had been temporarily resettled to use slash-and-burn agriculture to clear parts of Sweden proper like Värmland, would account for the majority of permanent settlers who moved on to America: Finnish trailblazers transplanted log cabin architecture from Tavastia, Savo and Karelia, which would become icons of American frontier culture in the Thirteen Colonies and early United States, such as the Nothnagle Log House.^[1][2]

In 2003, Anneli Jäätteenmäki, leader of the Centre Party, won the Finnish parliamentary election. During the campaign, she accused the incumbent Prime Minister, Paavo Lipponen, of aligning neutral Finland with the United States in the Iraq War following a meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush. This accusation was based on confidential foreign ministry documents that suggested Finnish cooperation with the U.S.-led coalition, which many Finns considered an illegal war of aggression. Lipponen denied the claims, affirming Finland's support for the United Nations and its Secretary-General.

Jäätteenmäki's government, formed after the election, lasted only 63 days. She resigned amid allegations that she had misled Parliament regarding the manner in which she obtained the leaked documents. Jäätteenmäki received the documents from President Tarja Halonen’s adviser, Martti Manninen. The scandal, widely referred to in Finland as the "Iraq leak".^[3][4]

The number of travelers from the United States to Finland has been steadily increasing, amounting to between 200,000 and 380,000 visitors each year.^[5]

In 2019, Finnish Air Force and USSPACECOM signed a Memorandum of Understanding between Finland and the United States on space situational awareness cooperation in Helsinki, Finland. These agreements foster openness, predictability of space operations, and transparency for space domain awareness.

On August 3, 2022, the U.S. Senate unanimously approved Finland and Sweden's accession bids to join NATO.^[6] U.S. President Joe Biden approved the NATO membership of Finland and Sweden in August 2022.^[7]

On December 18, 2023, the US (represented by Antony Blinken) and Finland (represented by Antti Häkkänen and Elina Valtonen) signed a Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) in Washington, D.C.^[8][9]

The agreement regulates the presence of the US armed forces and their dependents on the territory of the Finland, as well as the presence and activities of US suppliers on the territory of the Finland.^[10]

President Joe Biden visited Helsinki on July 12, 2023 and met with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö and leaders of other Nordic nations, including Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. The purpose was to celebrate Finland joining the NATO.^[11][12][13]

During the second term of US President Donald Trump, Finnish President Alexander Stubb established a good personal rapport with Trump over their shared interest in golf, with the United States committing to purchase icebreakers from Finland in March 2025.^[14] To this trust experts attributed the American invitation of the Finnish President to participate in talks at the August 2025 White House Multilateral Meeting on Ukraine, making Finland the only small country represented at the high-stakes summit in Washington alongside the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, the UK, Ukraine, the EU, and NATO.^[15][16]

The increasing importance of close relations between Finland and the United States was further evidenced by the announcement that a third meeting between Presidents Stubb and Trump - for the first time accompanied by Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo - was scheduled to take place over a two-day visit by Finnish officials to meet with American officials to discuss a variety of topics at the White House in October 2025.^[17]

The United States Ambassador to Finland is Howard Brodie. The current Finnish Ambassador to the United States is Leena-Kaisa Mikkola, who began her posting in September 2024.^[18][19]

In 2024, the United States' share of Finland's exports was about 9.6% and of imports 5.0%, and the United States was Finland's third largest export country and sixth largest import country.^[20]

Finland's exports to the U.S. in 2024 were around $10.1 billion, including chemicals, machinery (except electrical), petroleum and coal products, paper, and electronic products. Meanwhile, U.S. exports to Finland were about $4.5 billion, mainly oil and gas, electronics, chemicals, minerals, and transportation equipment.^[21]

During 1975–2023 six presidents of the United States have visited Finland. Of them, George H. W. Bush visited Finland twice. Basic facts of these visits are given in the table below. In some cases, the table contains only the arrival date.^[22]

In addition to this, Barack Obama visited Finland during 26–27 September 2019. He gave a talk at the Nordic Business Forum.^[23]

• A town of Finnish immigrants in Northern Michigan
• Finnish Congregational Church and Parsonage in South Thomaston, Maine, United States
• Finland and USA are very at the same level in ice hockey and the matches between the two have always been entertaining
• Finland, Minnesota is a village founded by immigrants of Finnish origin
• Finnish Air Force Hawker Hurricane warbird with US Navy T-6 Texan warbird in Finland

The Embassy of the United States is located in Helsinki. The Embassy of Finland is located in Washington, D.C.

• Embassy of the United States in Helsinki
• Embassy of Finland in Washington, D.C.

According to the Meridian International Center and Gallup's U.S.-Global Leadership Project, as of 2012, 48% of Finnish people approved of U.S. leadership, with 34% disapproving and 18% uncertain.^[24]

Finland–United States relations on Arctic issues are strong. Addressing these issues is normally done through the Arctic Council, as both countries believe it to be the leading way of cooperation on Arctic issues.

At the 2024 NATO summit, on 11 July 2024, it was decided that the United States, Canada and Finland are to form the ICE Pact, in which Finland will serve as the majority builder of icebreaker vessels.^[25][26]

In October 2025, Alexander Stubb and Donald Trump sign a memorandum of understanding about "icebreaker cooperation".^[27][28]

The League of Finnish-American Societies (Finnish: Suomi-Amerikka Yhdistysten Liitto) is a non-profit organization promoting cultural exchange between countries which operates in Finland. It has around 30 chapters in Finland, e.g. those in Helsinki, Turku, Oulu and Kuopio.^[29]

Finnish Americans celebrate FinnFest USA, a festival held annually in the United States on the occasion of midsummer.^[30]

• Foreign relations of Finland
• Foreign relations of the United States
• US–EU relations
• NATO-EU relations
• Agreement on Defense Cooperation between Finland and the United States of America
• Finnish Americans

 This article incorporates public domain material from U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets. United States Department of State.

• Fields, Marek. "Reinforcing Finland's Attachment to the West: British and American Propaganda and Cultural Diplomacy in Finland, 1944-1962." (2015). Abstract
• Golubev, Alexey, and Irina Takala. The Search for a Socialist El Dorado: Finnish Immigration to Soviet Karelia from the United States and Canada in the 1930s (MSU Press, 2014)
• Hasan, Ali Ghafil. "US-Finland Economic Relations 1917-1945." Eurasian Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences 2 (2021): 28-34. online
• Jakobson, Max. The diplomacy of the winter war: an account of the Russo-Finnish War, 1939-1940 (Harvard Univ Press, 1961.)
• Rislakki, Jukka, "`Without Mercy': U.S. Strategic Intelligence and Finland in the Cold War," Journal of Military History, (Jan. 2015) 79#1 pp: 127–49.
• Schwartz, Andrew J. America and the Russo-Finnish War (Public Affairs Press, 1960)
• Wargelin Brown, K. Marianne. "Finnish Americans." Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 2, Gale, 2014), pp. 137–151. online

• History of Finland - U.S. relations

Media related to Relations of Finland and the United States at Wikimedia Commons