Finland’s Foreign Minister Explained Why the States That Have Recognized Palestine Are Well-Meaning Fools

Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians are set to begin in Cairo, Egypt. The starting points are promising, as a representative of the extremist group Hamas assures that the organization seeks to reach an agreement to end the war in Gaza.

However, right at the outset, the organization has demanded that Israel immediately cease all military operations in Gaza if it wants to reach an agreement — a stance that has hardly helped build trust in the terrorists. On the positive side, Hamas has also expressed its own willingness to stop fighting, provided Israel does the same.

In other words, the situation remains tense, and there is no certainty about the outcome. Therefore, the rest of the world should aim to help facilitate the formation of an agreement.

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Finland’s Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen (National Coalition Party) has stated that she hopes a ceasefire can be implemented immediately, as the release of hostages has been awaited for nearly two years. This, she says, would hopefully also allow sufficient humanitarian aid to reach Gaza and help calm the situation across the region.

According to Valtonen, Finland’s position is that Hamas must be disarmed. In her words, “the point now is that disarmament simply must be achieved. We cannot accept any kind of terrorist organization at the helm of any territory — and especially not of a future state.”

She also emphasized that “we support the two-state model. That in itself means that the State of Palestine will be recognized. But this requires that the Palestinian administration be a civilian government committed to nonviolence and to ensuring security for Israel, neighboring countries, and its own people.”

In other words, it is not yet sensible to recognize the State of Palestine; instead, the promise of independence should be used as an incentive to achieve a positive outcome in the peace negotiations. Unfortunately, most of the world’s countries have already, in their folly, played that card.

Thus, their actions — the premature recognition of Palestine — can well be described as the work of well-meaning fools, which will hopefully not have too great an impact on the outcome of the negotiations. However, should that happen, it would be wise to learn from it when resolving future crises.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Optimism and Reality of the Gaza Peace Proposal
Finland May Recognize Palestine as an Independent State
Palestine’s Statehood and International Law

How to Increase Fertility Rates: A Finnish Solution

According to an article in Helsingin Sanomat, birth and total fertility rates have declined in Finland, much like in other Western countries. The development has been rapid, as in 2011 the total fertility rate for women was still 1.87, but by 2023 it had dropped to 1.26, the lowest figure ever recorded in the country.

The reason for this worrying trend is not a reluctance to have children, as 80 percent of Finns still want to have two or more children. Instead, one of the main reasons for the low number of children is that Finnish women are postponing childbearing to a relatively late stage in life due to the demands of education and careers, and likely also due to a societal climate that idealizes youth and singlehood.

Unfortunately, female biology is such that fertility declines rapidly after the age of 30. As a result, the choices made in life often lead to unwanted childlessness.

The Finnish government has not remained inactive on this issue. It has commissioned a population policy report that proposes a financial incentive for having the first child before the age of 30.

According to the proposal, the incentive could range from €10,000 to €30,000 and could be tied, for example, to a mortgage or student loan. Alternatively, it could be used to reduce taxes.

The report also suggests increasing education about fertility in schools and investing in fertility treatments by providing more resources to the public sector, reducing waiting lists, and thereby ensuring the highest possible effectiveness of the treatments.

In regard to the latter, the government has already made a proposal that would provide state support for fertility treatments in the future. However, it remains to be seen whether the other proposals in the report will also be implemented in Finland.

In my view, this matter is becoming urgent, as the Finnish population is aging rapidly with the rising median age, and immigration to Finland does not seem to attract enough people whose skills would be useful in a knowledge-based society. On the contrary, it seems to be increasing the proportion of the population that needs to be supported rather than leading to effective employment of the newcomers.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Humanitarian immigration does not provide a solution to Finland's demographic dependency ratio
The Finnish Government is Unanimous on Fixing the Country's Economy
Why Can't Finland Find Workforce?