My Oulu: The city wants a Nato Centre of Excellence to Oulu – would benefit all of Finland
The City of Oulu is ready to negotiate a contribution to the costs of establishing and maintaining the Centre of Excellence in Oulu. Photo: Mostphotos
Jaa sosiaalisessa mediassa:
Oulu sees the benefits of the Nato Centre of Excellence for the whole of Finland and is ready to contribute financially to the project. Through Oulu, Finland would have the potential to become an internationally recognised player in dual-use technologies. Oulu already hosts the accelerator and test centre for Nato's Diana programme and leads an ecosystem of 5G and 6G research and industry in Europe.
When Prime Minister Petteri Orpo visited Oulu in August, attending the Northern Security and Economic Forum, Mayor of Oulu Ari Alatossava proposed that Finland should apply for a Nato Centre of Excellence and that it should be established in Oulu. The initiative was renewed with further details in September as Minister of Economic Affairs Wille Rydman visited Oulu.
The City of Oulu is ready to negotiate a contribution to the costs of establishing and maintaining the Centre of Excellence.
”The pursuit of a NATO Centre of Excellence in Finland is mentioned in the government programme. In addition, US Senator Lindsey Graham recommended earlier this year that Finland apply for a Nato Centre of Excellence focusing on 6G, edge computing, and quantum topics. The outgoing US Ambassador Douglas Hickey reiterated this call”, says Alatossava, referring to recent interviews in Helsingin Sanomat.
Oulu sees the centre of excellence as benefiting the whole of Finland. The establishment of the centre would be justified in terms of foreign and security policy as well as economic policy, as it combines the needs of the export industry and defence.
”The centre would operate nationwide and enable Finnish companies to enter the international business of developing dual-use technologies for civil and military use”, states Juha Ala-Mursula, Director of BusinessOulu.
Wireless communication technologies have been at the cutting edge of Finnish technological development for decades. Today, Finland is heavily involved in 5G and 6G research and industry, and the Oulu-driven ecosystem is leading the work in Europe. A strong radio and semiconductor industry in the Oulu region supports the development and application of these technologies.
“Oulu is doing high-level international work in edge computing research and industrial application development, and local companies are highly motivated to contribute to the defence sector. In quantum computing, Oulu’s focus is on cryptography, which concentrates on encrypting and protecting data. This is essential for secure communications in civil and military applications. In addition, hardware development related to quantum computing is progressing in Oulu,” Ala-Mursula lists.
Oulu already hosts the accelerator and test centre of Nato’s Diana organisation. The centre’s profile is based on 6G technology and Oulu plans to expand this unit with new resources.
Nato has established its Centres of Excellence in almost every Alliance member state. The centres are thematically profiled and provide specialised services to member countries, partners and Nato itself.