All posts tagged "Finland"

Finns love their coffee. Per capita, people in Finland consume 12 kgs of coffee per year, making them the second largest per-capita coffee drinkers, only surpassed by Luxembourg. Finland also often ranks as the most technologically advanced country in the world. So, it only makes sense that they embrace a merger of the two — technology, and coffee. Thus, an artisanal coffee shop in Helsinki, Finland, made news when they started selling an AI-formulated blend. “We basically gave descriptions of all our coffee types and their flavours to AI and instructed it to create a new exciting blend,” said......

By Anne Kauranen and Attila Cser HELSINKI/NUIJAMAA, Finland (Reuters) - Finland early on Saturday closed four crossings on its border with Russia as Helsinki seeks to halt a flow of asylum seekers it says was instigated by Moscow. The Finnish Border Guard on Friday announced it would erect barriers from midnight local time at the Vaalimaa, Nuijamaa, Imatra and Niirala border posts in southeast Finland, which account for much of the travel between the two countries. "We have had bigger numbers like on Monday 39 and on Wednesday 75. Yesterday was quite peaceful, but today again over 100 irregula......

Washington (AFP) - US President Joe Biden will head to Europe in a week for a three-nation trip, including a NATO summit, focused on reinforcing the international coalition backing Ukraine as it pursues a counteroffensive against Russia. Biden is set to depart on July 9 for Britain, and then head on to Lithuania's capital Vilnius for the meeting of NATO leaders, followed by a one-day visit to Helsinki for talks with his Nordic counterparts, the White House said Sunday in a statement. The NATO summit comes as the Western military alliance seeks to admit Sweden, whose membership bid has been blo......

Sweden cannot count on Turkey's support for joining NATO after a right-wing extremist politician burned a copy of the Koran in Stockholm, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Monday. "If you don't show respect for the Turkish Republic or the religious beliefs of Muslims, then you can't get any support from us in terms of NATO," Erdogan said in Ankara. Sweden needs Turkey's approval to become a member of NATO. But tensions between the two countries have risen in recent weeks, stalling Stockholm's bid. The latest setback comes after a small protest in the Swedish capital on Saturday le......

The French parliament has approved the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO. As the National Assembly announced on Wednesday, 209 deputies voted in favour of a corresponding bill while 46 voted against. According to a parliamentary spokeswoman, the law is the basis for a ratification of the accession by French President Emmanuel Macron. The Senate, the second chamber of parliament, had already voted in favour a fortnight ago. Sweden and Finland had applied for membership in the Western defence alliance in view of the Russian war against Ukraine. Until now, the two Nordic EU states have been......

NATO has officially started the process of admitting Sweden and Finland into the alliance, with all 30 leaders in favour, NATO sources inform dpa. The decision came after Turkey dropped its opposition to the Nordic countries' membership application in a last-minute deal ahead of the start of the NATO summit in Madrid on Wednesday. Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Turkey however blocked their accession for weeks over concerns linked to terrorism. New NATO membership requires unanimity. A breakthrough was secured on Tuesday evening after Finland and ......