Gender equality and security policy: Inspiration from Finland and Sweden at the first meeting of the Women’s Network in 2023
Vendula Kazlauskas
/ Ed. 30. 10. 2023
This year's first meeting of the Network of Women in Czech Foreign Policy took place on Monday, March 6, in an exceptional format. In cooperation with the embassies of Finland and Sweden in the Czech Republic, we organized a meeting dedicated to gender equality and security policy.
Although Finland and Sweden shared a long history of military neutrality, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, both countries made a historic decision to apply for NATO membership. At the same time, the emphasis on gender equality, traditionally shared by both countries, is reflected in considerations of security policy and ongoing accession processes.
The participants of the meeting discussed not only the accession of both countries to NATO, but also the role of women in conflicts or why more women than men sign up for foreign service in Finland. Among the speakers were not only representatives of both embassies, but also Minna Laajava, Director of the Unit for Security Policy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland, and Helené Lackenbauer, Deputy Research Director at the Swedish Defense Research Agency. The meeting was kindly hosted by HE Pasi Tuominen, Ambassador of Finland, in his residence.
See photos from the event on our Facebook.
We would like to thank the Embassy of Finland and the Embassy of Sweden in Prague for their support.
