Shortly before leaving Lebanon in 2001, the last Finnish peacekeepers serving in the UN's UNIFIL forces erected a monument in memory of those in their ranks who had died in the line of duty. The withdrawal of the forces took place following Israel's pullout of South Lebanon during the previous spring.
Now Finns may be called back to the area. The United Nations and the European Union have proposed the deployment of more forces to the Israeli-Lebanese border to back up the residual UN force that is there now.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said that he expects a force that is considerably larger than the 2000 force, with a “modified and different concept of operation and with different capabilities”.
At least seven EU countries, including Finland, have promised to provide forces for the effort.
The issue was discussed at a meeting of EU defence policy directors in Helsinki on Tuesday. But a Finnish Defence Ministry representative said that intervention now would be premature -- as neither side is ready for a third party to be deployed.
At the end of this month, the EU's first military operation begins in the Congo, involving more than 2,000 peacekeepers including a small contingent of Finnish officers. A team of 12 health care workers is also on the way.
YLE24
