Three of Finland’s four main opposition parties – the Social Democrats, the Greens and the Left Alliance – have filed an interpellation over the government’s failure to act in recognising Palestinian statehood.
Next week’s UN General Assembly meeting would be the right time to recognise Palestine, and the matter should no longer be postponed under any pretext, the opposition parties charged in a statement on Friday.
So far, nearly 150 countries – more than three-quarters of all UN members – have recognised Palestinian statehood, and many others have announced their intention to do so.
According to Greens leader Sofia Virta, it is “shameful” that President Alexander Stubb has to go to the UN meeting “empty-handed” due to internal conflicts within the Finnish government.
Two of the four governing parties, the Finns Party and the Christian Democrats, oppose the recognition of Palestine.
Stubb has repeatedly said that he would be ready to sign off on recognition if the government decides to propose it.
“If we have a government that is unable to act to stop genocide, it is not a functioning government or a government worthy of trust,” Virta said at a press conference at the Parliament building on Friday.
“Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, and Finland has been watching from the sidelines for far too long. It is time for the opposition to demand action from the government, because the government is clearly incapable of dealing with the issue itself,” argued Minja Koskela, chair of the Left Alliance.
In their interpellation, the opposition parties plan to discuss the government’s position on issues such as suspension of the EU-Israel trade agreement and whether the government will propose the recognition of Palestine this autumn according to the president’s wishes.
According to Tytti Tuppurainen, the leader of the SDP parliamentary group, the government’s inability to recognise Palestine “creates a dangerous precedent” regarding the problems of managing Finland’s foreign policy.
According to Tuppurainen, foreign policy leadership should be expected to be able to act in all possible situations, especially in the current changed foreign and security policy environment.
“Prime Minister Petteri Orpo is not receiving the position from the Government that the President expects. Consequently, cooperation on foreign policy management between the government and the president has failed,” she alleged.
“The inability of the government to act in a situation where the president has a clear view on the matter and where there is broad support for the president’s position in Parliament is a new and unprecedented situation,” Tuppurainen added.
According to the Greens, the PM’s inaction on the Palestine issue undermines Finland’s reputation as a “defender of the weak.”
“I personally see the Orpo government as underperforming and undermining the reputation that the president is trying to build. I see this as a big risk for Finland’s reputation. Although of course this is not about our reputation, but about saving lives,” Virta said.
According to Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP), the government will not decide on recognising Palestine before next week’s UN General Assembly meeting.
The interpellation is likely to lead to a parliamentary vote testing confidence in the government.
