Finland to Halt Arms Exports Permits for Saudi, UAE Sales

(Bloomberg) -- Finland won’t grant new arms export permits for sales to Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates, citing an “alarming humanitarian situation in Yemen.”

Finland, whose decision follows a similar stance by Denmark earlier on Thursday, grants arms export permits on a case-by-case basis, the Foreign Ministry said in an emailed statement.

No “lethal weapons” have been granted export permits by Finland to Saudi Arabia since 2015, Defense Minister Jussi Niinisto wrote in his blog on Oct. 23, adding that authorizations have been issued to items such as communications equipment, first aid equipment and a catapult used for launching unmanned aerial vehicles or drones.

To contact the reporter on this story: Kati Pohjanpalo in Helsinki at kpohjanpalo@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Tasneem Hanfi Brögger at tbrogger@bloomberg.net, James Kraus

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