As part of the bilateral defense cooperation agreement signed on Monday between the United States and Finland, the Pentagon gained access to four Finnish air bases, one naval base, and a number of other military facilities, according to the document.
The agreement signed by Finnish Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen and U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, which is yet to be approved by the Finnish parliament, provides for the Pentagon's permission to use 15 Finnish bases, facilities and slides, in particular for the deployment of American troops, weapons and military equipment.
American troops will be able to quickly get to Finland to help it in the event of a conflict.
They will be granted unimpeded access to 15 facilities and areas where they can store military equipment and ammunition, Reuters reports, citing the text of the agreement.
These include four air bases, a military port, and a railroad in the north of the country. The warehouses for military materiel will be located along the roads leading to the Russian border.
American units will be able to be based in Finland on a permanent basis, but so far, according to the government, there are no such plans. They will also be able to conduct military exercises in the country.
It is in the northeast, where the threat is posed by a fully capable Northern Fleet and strategic aviation, that Finland can help NATO confront Russia, said retired U.S. Major General Gordon Davis.
Finland is modernizing an air base near the city of Rovaniemi, which is to house 64 F-35 fighter jets purchased from the United States starting in 2026.
In the event of a conflict, Rovaniemi will become a regional operational center for NATO forces. It is connected to a railroad from the Swedish port city of Tornio, which continues to Kemijärvi, a town an hour's drive from the Russian border and seven hours from Murmansk, home to the Northern Fleet base.
Due to be completed in 2024, the electrification of the road will make it easier for NATO to bring reinforcements and military equipment across the Atlantic directly to Russia's borders in the Arctic.
NATO member states such as Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, and the United Kingdom have agreements with the United States similar to Finland's, and an agreement with Denmark is pending.
Background. As a reminder, Finland will more than double its ammunition production to help Ukraine.