GLOBAL DAYS OF ACTION TO CLOSE BASES  DEMONSTRATION

Global Days of Action to Close Bases  Demonstration –
Helsinki February 23, 2026

Speech by Gashaw Bibani

Came to Finland in 1995 as Kurdish refugee – member o the Vantaa City Council/left-wing party  – speaks Swedish

(Vantaa fourth biggest town in Finland)

Dear friends,

We are here (today) because Finland’s direction is being changed in a way that its citizens have never accepted.

We are here because we will not stand idly by while our territory, our decision-making power, and our future are being given away — piece by piece, agreement by agreement.

The DCA agreement and enabeling NATO bases in Finland are not innocent technical arrangements.

They are the largest transfers of power in Finnish foreign policy history, and they are being made in haste, without open discussion, without a mandate from the people.

We are told that it is all about cooperation.

But we know better.

This is not cooperation — this is submission.

The DCA agreement gives the United States rights that have never been granted to any foreign state in Finnish history.

• They can use the agreed areas without full Finnish control.

• They can import and store equipment that Finland may not be allowed to inspect.

• Their soldiers can operate on Finnish soil with legal exemptions that Finns do not even have in their own country.

It is worth asking, What country would cede control of its territory to another country and at the same time claim to be independent?

Finland is no one’s base.

Finland is no one’s warehouse.

Finland is no one’s game pieces.

We are told that bases increase security.

But what happens when the military presence of a foreign great power increases within Finland’s borders?

We become a strategic target.

We become a military junction.

We become a target if tensions between the great powers escalate.

Is this really the future we want for our children?

Is this the price we are willing to pay?

Security does not come from bringing foreign weapons and troops here.

Security comes from keeping the decision-making power in our own hands.

And then to the Nuclear Weapons Act.

The  amendment that is being prepared to the Nuclear Energy Act is not an isolated issue.

It is a direct consequence of Finland opening its doors to the military presence of a foreign state.

When we talk about the transit or storage of nuclear weapons, we are talking about the most dangerous sliding phenomenon  in Finnish history.

Many are afraid, including me — and with good reason:

• legislation can be changed under the guise of a crisis

• external pressure increases as the United States gains a foothold in Finland

• uncertainty over nuclear weapons increases tensions with Russia

• Finland may find itself in a situation where it no longer decides for itself what happens on its soil

Do we really want to open the door to developments that could bring nuclear weapons-related activities to Finnish soil — even in theory?

If the answer is no, then we need to say it out loud. And we need to say it now.

The DCA agreement is a huge change, but its preparation has been quick, closed and hidden from the citizens.

Critical issues have been ignored.

Citizens have been bypassed.

Discussion has been suppressed.

But Finland is not a country where decisions are made in cabinets and the people are kept silent.

Finland is a country where citizens have the right to ask, question and object.

And that is exactly why we are here today.

We are not against cooperation.

We are not against allies.

We are not against security.

But we oppose Finland giving up decision-making power on its own soil.

We oppose the normalization of a foreign military presence without open discussion.

We oppose changes to Finland’s security policy in a way that could increase risks rather than reduce them.

And we oppose the opening of the nuclear weapons law in a way that could expose Finland to developments that we no longer control.

We demand:

• transparency

• democratic discussion

• maintaining of Finland’s full decision-making power

• and above all, that Finnish soil remains under Finnish control

Dear friends,

Finland is a small country with a great history.

It has survived because our predecessors have made their own decisions and stayed on their own path!

That is why today we say clearly out loud what our decision-makers have failed to say:

Finnish soil is not a commodity.

Finnish decision-making power is non-negotiable.

Finland’s future belongs to the Finns — and to no one else.

(käännös Ulla Klötzer)