Finland tells 900,000 reservists their roles 'in the event of war'

Finland has sent letters to nearly a million military reservists, setting out their roles “in the event of war” amid rising tension with neighbouring Russia. The letters have been dispatched to 900,000 former conscripts in the armed forces, including to Finns living abroad. The first were sent earlier this month, with the final batch distributed in the last few days. Finland is not a member of Nato and the country shares an 830-mile border with Russia – the longest of any European nation apart from Ukraine. In the aftermath of Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the invasion of eastern Ukraine, Finland is uniquely vulnerable to any further aggression. The letter tells the reservists which regiment or unit to report to in the event of hostilities. “Attached you will find your personal details as well as your role in the event of war,” it reads. One Finnish reservist, who received the letter, said: “The timing was not random. It is clearly due to a more aggressive stance by the Russians. I’ve been in the reserves for 15 years and this is the first time I’ve received something like this. They send out letters like this very rarely.” Finland’s army has 16,000 soldiers, but it could expand to 285,000 if reserves were to be called up.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/finland/11621512/Finland-tells-900000-reservists-their-roles-in-the-event-of-war.html