The Finnish and Swedish police into increasingly closer co-operation in the Lapland and Norrbotten regions

Finnish and Swedish police personnel are training together in Luleå in Sweden this week for new tasks. This is based on a new police co-operation agreement that is applied in the municipalities of the border regions of Lapland in Finland and Norrbotten in Sweden.

The agreement gives the police the right to carry out urgent assignments in each other’s areas in six municipalities in Finland and four in Sweden. The training event in Luleå is arranged as a result of excellent co-operation between the various police units, with the trainers and content managers from the National Bureau of Investigation, Police University College, Western Uusimaa Police Department, Lapland Police Department, Oulu Centre of Command, and National Police Board of Finland. The Finnish and Swedish police are responsible for the actual mutual co-operation.

The training objective is to ensure that Swedish police will be able to operate independently in the territory of Finland. A Finnish police patrol may also operate reciprocally on the Swedish side of the border in situations specified in the agreement. The exercises and future co-operation will further promote co-operation and communication between the two countries. 

Police officers can cross the national border upon request

According to the new agreement, Finnish and Swedish police officers may, upon request, cross the national border and take temporary measures in the territory of the other country. Police officers who cross the national border can work independently until the police officers of the host country, which has requested assistance, arrive at the scene. After that, they can assist the police officers of the host country under their direction.

The agreement also allows the police of a neighbouring country to cross the national border and to take action in the vicinity of the border even without the request of the other country in the case of an urgent assignment in which a person’s life, health or bodily integrity is  compromised.In the future, it is therefore possible to see a Finnish police patrol in action near the northern border area of Finland on the Swedish side of the border.

The President of the Republic of Finland approved the agreement in May 2024. Its application will begin when the personnel has been provided with relevant training.