Putin's claims on Finnish icebreaker plans stir global buzz
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin claimed that Finland is attempting to convince the USA to order nuclear-powered icebreakers, even though Finland lacks the capability to build them. President Alexander Stubb did not suggest the construction of nuclear-powered icebreakers in Finland to the USA—the Finnish president’s office denied Putin’s assertions.
The newspaper "Iltalehti" reported on Vladimir Putin's remarks about enticing Americans with the prospects of building nuclear-powered icebreakers.
Can Finland even build a single nuclear icebreaker? - wondered Putin during a meeting with business representatives at the Kremlin earlier this week.
The Russian leader referred to Stubb's meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida, where the two presidents participated in a golf tournament at the end of March. At that time, the Finnish president noted that icebreaker orders, which Finland is keen on, were a topic of discussion. The USA is interested in these specific ships because Russia currently possesses 48 icebreakers, while the USA does not have even one.
Finland, however, is the largest supplier of such ships. Finnish shipyards have designed 80% and constructed about 60% of all icebreakers worldwide.
Russia is the only country that builds and operates nuclear-powered icebreakers, primarily for navigation in the Arctic region.
Value of the American order estimated at 2.5 billion euros (2.8 billion dollars)
U.S. President Trump announced at the beginning of his term that the USA could purchase around forty icebreakers, and Finland is eager for a share of those orders. As reported by the newspaper "Helsingin Sanomat," the shipyard in Rauma (located on the southwest coast by the Gulf of Bothnia) is negotiating with the U.S. Coast Guard to build at least several medium-sized icebreakers. The order's value is estimated at about 2.5 billion 2.5 billion euros (2.8 billion dollars). However, these are not nuclear icebreakers, emphasized the newspaper, citing sources.
"HS" recalled that in the late 1980s, one Finnish shipyard constructed nuclear icebreaker hulls for the USSR, but the reactor and propulsion systems were installed in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg).
In 2024, the USA, Canada, and Finland signed the ICE Pact (Icebreaker Collaboration Effort) agreement to build icebreakers, driven by the increasing "importance of the Arctic region for economic, national, and climate security," and by heightened interest and activity in the polar region, not only from Russia but also from China.
