Thousands of people gathered at Helsinki's Senate Square on Monday evening for a candlelight vigil to mark the third anniversary of the war in Ukraine.
There were about 2,000 people at the site at around 6:20pm, according to police.
The event began at 6pm, with the ceremony starting with ringing of Helsinki Cathedral's bells, followed by a minute of silence.
Monday marked the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and cities around the world, including Helsinki, are staging memorial events.
Event organisers had 2,000 candles for participants to use. Following the event at 7pm, there will be a multilingual, ecumenical prayer service held at the Helsinki Cathedral.
The unused parts of the grave candles will be sent to Ukraine's frontline.
"We invite the people of Helsinki to the Light for Ukraine event at Senate Square on Monday the 24th of February at 6 pm to light a grave candle for the victims of the war in Ukraine," the city said in a press release.
Additionally, there is an exhibition entitled 'Unissued Diplomas' being held at Helsinki University's main building (Fabianinkatu 33), near Senate Square. The free exhibit honours the memory of Ukrainian students who will never graduate because they lost their lives in the Russian invasion.
The Light for Ukraine event was organised by the Lutheran Church in Helsinki, Mothersforpeace, and the Ukrainian Association in Finland in cooperation with the City of Helsinki, the University of Helsinki, the Prime Minister’s Office and the Ukrainian Embassy.
Musical service in Tampere
Tampere was also hosting similar events in support of Ukraine. The Ukranian Association in Finland is holding a candlelight memorial and demonstration at the Tampere Central Square at 6pm.
In addition, the City of Tampere and its parishes are organising a joint musical service at the Kaleva Church at 7pm, featuring performances by musicians Julia Kovrigina-Famba and Stanislav Kriuchkov.
"Through this event, we want to send the message that we are still supporting Ukraine and praying for a fair and lasting peace," Dean of the Tampere Cathedral parish Olli-Pekka Silfverhuth said.
Edited to update item content, photos.
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