Kääriäinen told members of the Parliamentary Defence Committee that the government plans to assess the situation again. He noted that the unpredictability of the situation is a new risk factor.
The weaponry has already been upgraded, with both grenade launchers and night-vision scopes. The forces have also been provided with more armoured vehicles.
The Finnish peacekeepers in Afghanistan recently drafted a letter sharply criticising what they saw as the inadequate quality of their equipment. The Finns said that members of their group have had to borrow protective vests from Norwegian and Swedish forces, or buy their own.
Nevertheless, the Defence Forces feel that the equipment of soldiers operating in Afghanistan, and others who will soon be going to Lebanon is of high quality.
The Finnish contingent of about 100 crisis management soldiers has seen the security situation in the country deteriorate.
Last month one of the soldiers was injured in what later proved to be a friendly fire incident.