Defence Minister Jyri Häkämies says that the size of the Finnish Defence Forces will not be reduced during this government's term, which is scheduled to end in 2011. Addressing the main Veteran's Day event on Sunday in Kouvola, Häkämies said that in the long run, troop levels could be lowered gradually. Chief of Defence Juhani Kaskeala has repeatedly called for cuts in troop levels of 100,000 over the next decade. He says current funding levels are insufficient to maintain a large reserve force. President Tarja Halonen was also among those attending the commemorations in Kouvola, south-eastern Finland. She told YLE that there are no intentions to make any radical changes in the Defence Forces. Veterans' Day marks the end of the so-called Lapland War in 1945. Under the terms of the interim peace agreement signed with the Soviet Union, Finland was obliged to expel German forces from the north of Finland. The Germans had fought alongside Finland during the Continuation War. Estonian Veterans Honoured
Meanwhile in Tallinn, the Finnish Defence Forces honoured Estonians who fought for Finland's independence in World War II with medals on Sunday, on the occasion of Finnish Veterans' Day.
Marshal Mannerheim 140th anniversary medals were handed to about 70 Estonians in a ceremony in the hall of the Estonian Academy of Science, followed by a reception at the Finnish embassy.
Several hundred men who fought on the side of Finland in World War II still live in Estonia. The Estonian regiment, JR 200, fought in the area of Vyborg, now part of Russia. There were also numerous Estonians in the Finnish navy.