Summarized: The article discusses former Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin's views on Europe's response to the Ukraine war. Marin argues that it is morally and strategically unacceptable for Russia to outspend Ukraine on defense. She suggests that Europe could close the resource gap between Ukraine and Russia by allocating just 0.2% of its GDP. Marin emphasizes that supporting Ukraine is a matter of will and that Europe must take leadership in its own security. She also notes that Europe can no longer rely solely on transatlantic cooperation for its defense. Marin's comments were made in the context of a report by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, where she now works as a strategic advisor.

AI translated summary:

Yle interviewed Russian prisoners of war (POWs) held in Ukraine. Many of these prisoners joined the war to avoid criminal sentences back in Russia. A significant number of the POWs come from Russia’s Kursk region and had surrendered after Ukraine’s attack on the area in early August. Some of the prisoners reported injuries and recounted the desperate Russian defenses, with accounts of being abandoned by their comrades. Others had accepted military service as an alternative to facing criminal charges in Russia, enticed by promises of immunity from prosecution and financial incentives.

Ukraine, following Geneva Conventions, allowed journalists to meet the prisoners under conditions protecting their identities. The POWs spoke of relatively good treatment in Ukrainian custody, contrary to fears of mistreatment they held prior. The Red Cross has been involved in facilitating prisoner welfare and communication with families. Meanwhile, reports indicate that Russia

China sat out the Swiss meeting -- "The international community should create conditions for the resumption of direct dialogue and negotiations between the two sides and provide assistance," Xi told Orban, according to Chinese state media.

Finland's results in the European election bucked a continent-wide trend of rising support for parties on the outer fringe of right-wing politics, with the Left Alliance and the National Coalition winning big at the expense of the nationalist Finns Party.

Leftist leader Li Andersson received more votes than any other candidate has ever received in a European election.

https://web.archive.org/web/20240518061606/https://kaks.fi/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/tutkimusosio-18052024.pdf

Finland dataset

Edit: final update for the viz, comments started with this

Edited a shorter ChatGPT summary due comment:

Finns Party MP Timo Vornanen's arrest following a nightclub altercation in Helsinki has sparked significant attention. Allegedly, Vornanen discharged a firearm into the ground after a confrontation outside the Ihku nightclub. The fact that Vornanen, a first-term MP, previously served as a police officer for over two decades adds a layer of complexity and concern to the situation. The decision by the Finns Party's chair to cancel scheduled appearances in response to the incident underscores its seriousness.

President Alexander Stubb's comments expressing trust in the Finnish justice system reflect the broader public sentiment regarding the need for a thorough investigation into the matter. Despite the lack of injuries, authorities are treating the incident as an attempted aggravated assault and firearms offense, highlighting the potential severity of Vornanen's actions.

The decision not to immediately detain Vornanen suggests that a

Gemini summary:

Germany has become the ninth country in the world to legalize cannabis. The new law allows individuals to grow up to three cannabis plants for personal consumption and to possess up to 25 grams of the drug. Cannabis clubs will also be allowed to grow and sell cannabis to their members. The law is expected to come into effect in April 2024.

ChatGPT summary:

Widespread industrial strikes have begun in Finland, affecting various sectors from Wednesday through Friday. The strike includes daycare and early childhood education services, factories, grocery stores, public transport, air traffic, and more. The impact is a result of several trade unions and workers' confederations opposing government reforms and social security cuts. Parents face disruptions in childcare and early education, while public transport services, including trains and buses, will be drastically curtailed on Friday. Air traffic will almost come to a standstill at major airports on Thursday and Friday, leading to flight cancellations and rerouting.

The strikes also affect the trade sector, with grocery stores, restaurants, and food production facilities closing on Thursday. Additionally, the construction sector experiences stoppages, impacting major industries like Stora Enso, UPM, and Huhtamäki. Postal services, delivery, logistics, and maintenance serv

I am a star. I'm a star, I'm a star, I'm a star. I am a big, bright, shining star.

The police broke an antifascist counter protest on Finland's independence day with force to clear a route for fascist marchers.

ChatGPT summary:

Protesters at the 'Helsinki without Nazis' demonstration on Independence Day accused the police of using excessive force. Kristian Wallgren described the police actions as "unnecessarily harsh," detailing how riot gear-clad officers surrounded demonstrators in Töölöntori Square, with mounted police dispersing the crowd. Wallgren found the situation frightening, citing rough encounters with obstacles like bike racks and being pushed against a tree. Despite the chaos, he believed a less forceful approach could have achieved the same dispersal outcome.

The police had banned the demonstration from Töölöntori due to a conflicting event organized by the nationalist 612 group. Officers detained 54 demonstrators who resisted orders to leave. Videos shared on social media platforms depicted clashes between mounted police and protesters. Kimmo Godtfr

ChatGPT summary:

Russia reportedly planned disruptive campaigns to hinder Finland and Sweden's NATO membership, as revealed in a leaked intelligence report obtained by Yle MOT. The document outlined a strategy involving organizing demonstrations under the guise of disruption to heighten tensions, particularly exploiting incidents like the Quran burning in Sweden. The objective was to sow discord and create a rift between Turkey and Europe, slowing down the NATO accession processes of both Nordic countries.

The Finnish Security Intelligence Service, Supo, confirmed awareness of these plans in Finland but refrained from providing further details due to operational considerations. While there's no evidence that Russia successfully implemented its disruptive strategies in Finland, Sweden continues to await approval for NATO membership, with the Russian intelligence service allegedly focusing more on campaigns against Sweden to exploit existing tensions.

The leaked documents, prepared by

Currently running with uBlock Origin with a lot of filter lists and Consent-o-matic, and the hidden setting to auto decline cookie dialogs but still getting popups, sticky videos and such.

Used to go with I still don't care about cookies but heard it can default to accepting more cookies than needed

No info on who, what or why

Modlog finds my account but doesn't link to anything to find out more:

mod Banned @boredtortoise from the community World [email protected]

reason: Sinophobia

expires: in 5 years

Edit: as the larger issue, when incorrect mod actions happen, shouldn't Lemmy have a system for handling those? Both transparency to the users, and ways to forward the action for an admin to fix

Neo-Nazi suspects discussed 'how easy' attacking Sanna Marin would be, court hears

Two suspects chatted about how easy it would be to attack a Social Democratic Party event in Lahti which then-PM Sanna Marin was scheduled to attend.

Police seized the suspects' ammunition cases, with some of the bullets arranged to resemble swastika patterns. Image: Poliisi

Yle News

17:56•Updated 18:00

On Monday, the trial of Finnish men accused of crimes with terrorist intent, who authorities claim were motivated by far-right ideologies, began at Päijät-Häme District Court on Monday.

According to the prosecutor, three of the four defendants are facing various charges related to firearms offences and training to commit a terrorist act. The fourth suspect is facing firearms possession charges.

Police have said the suspects are neo-Nazis who aimed to use accelerationist tactics to destabilise society, start a race war and advance their far-right goals.

Contrary to what authorities initially sugge

Brazil’s Lula backtracks on Putin arrest safety at Rio G20

Putin missed the G20 summit in India, avoiding any risk of criminal detention under an ICC warrant for alleged war crimes.

Published On 11 Sep 202311 Sep 2023

Brazil’s leader has withdrawn his personal assurance that Russian President Vladimir Putin would not be arrested if he attends next year’s Group of 20 summit in Rio de Janeiro, saying it would be up to the judiciary to decide.

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva also questioned Brazil’s membership in the United Nations war crimes court, saying on Monday “emerging countries often sign things that are detrimental to them”.

“I want to know why we are members but not the United States, not Russia, not India, not China,” Lula said. “I’m not saying I’m going to leave the court. I just want to know why Brazil is a signatory.”

Putin missed this year’s G20 gathering in the Indian capital, New Delhi, avoiding possible political opprobrium and any risk of criminal detention un

Russia Breaks Silence Over China Map Claiming Its Territory

The Russian Foreign Ministry has rejected China's apparent claim of ownership over a disputed island that has been a source of tension between Moscow and Beijing for decades.

Earlier this week, the Chinese Communist Party mouthpiece Global Times newspaper published the "2023 edition of China's standard map," crediting the Ministry of Natural Resources.

The map touches on multiple territorial disputes, among them Bolshoi Ussuriysky Island, which sits at the confluence of the Ussuri and Amur rivers that separate Russia and China. The island is known as Heixiazi, or Black Bear, in Chinese.

On Thursday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova dismissed any suggestion of reopening the territorial dispute, which she said had been settled by bilateral agreements more than 15 years ago.

"The Russian and Chinese sides adhere to the common position that the border issue between our countries has been finally resolved,

Post title from the lead paragraph for better context. I prefer original ones but felt it missed the beat somewhat. Hope I didn't add much bias.

Article:

"Finland to criminalise Holocaust denial, probe banning swastika use

The four-party government coalition revealed the contents of its anti-racism statement at a press conference on Thursday afternoon.

The four parties comprising Finland's coalition government unveiled their highly-anticipated joint statement on eradicating racism and promoting equality within Finnish society at a press conference on Thursday afternoon.

The statement comes in the wake of a summer of racism and far-right scandals — mostly involving ministers from the Finns Party — that engulfed the new government and led to the appointment of a working group tasked with proposing concrete measures to tackle racism and discrimination.

PM Orpo opened the press conference by noting that "racism is still a problem in Finnish society" before revealing how his adminis

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/6040987

IL: Supo blocks Purra's choice for media advisor role due to China links

The Finnish Security and Intelligence Service (Supo) highlighted a number of issues during the preferred candidate's security check, including his partner's former Chinese nationality.

Finance Minister Riikka Purra's (Finns) plans to appoint journalist Jari Kuikanmäki as her media relations advisor have fallen through following a background check by the Finnish Security and Intelligence Service (Supo).

The decision was first reported by tabloid Iltalehti.

In an interview with the newspaper, Kuikanmäki said that Supo highlighted a number of issues during his security clearance check, including his partner's former Chinese nationality, a trip to China in 2016, the Chinese nationalities of his partner's parents, and a trip to Finland in 2017.

"We met in London in 2011 and have been together ever since. We moved to Finland in 2013," Kuikanmäk