STOCKHOLM, October 3. /TASS/. NATO’s new Multi-Corps Land Component Command (MCLCC) officially opened its headquarters on October 3 in the Finnish city of Mikkeli, about 300 km from St. Petersburg, Russia.

"We set out to seek the establishment of a NATO command in Finland in autumn 2023 to maximize Finland’s security. Our objectives were approved at the meeting of NATO Ministers of Defense in June 2024. Now, a year later, we are already launching the command," Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen said at the ceremony, as quoted by the ministry's press service.

Hakkanen stated that the headquarters’ work would "strengthen NATO's defense capabilities" and "increase security in Finland." At present, it employs about ten people, with a peacetime staff expected to reach 50.

According to the Finnish Defense Ministry, the headquarters will plan and coordinate NATO ground forces’ activities in Northern Europe. "In normal conditions," it will be responsible for NATO drills and other activities, while "in emergency conditions," it will "plan, command and control land operations and defense in the High North."

The MCLCC in Mikkeli began operations on September 1. The new headquarters is located less than 200 km from the Russian border. In September 2024, it was reported that in peacetime the facility would plan and carry out NATO training activities in the region. The so-called high-alert headquarters will operate around the clock under the authority of NATO’s command in Norfolk, Virginia, on the US East Coast.