Helsinki, 12-14 June 2026
Our EUROCAPITALES 2026 International Meeting, organized by our Finnish partners, the European Movement Helsinki Region, took place in Helsinki at Hotel Hilton Helsinki Kalastajatorppa from June 12 to 14, under the themes: "Security and Civil Defence in Europe" and "Security Challenges in Europe".
We welcomed our Finnish, Greek, Austrian and French participants.
On Friday afternoon, June 12, we had the pleasure to visit the Merihaka Civil Defence Bedrock Shelter in Helsinki, led by Mr Jukka Lehtiranta (click HERE to read the summary).
Following this visit, Mr Jukka Lehtiranta gave a conference on "Helsinki Civil Defence from History to Current Day" (click HERE to read the summary) in Restaurant Oiva, where we had dinner.
These two presentations were highly instructive and we express our sincere thanks to him. The dinner was hosted by the European Movement Helsinki Region.
On Saturday morning June 13, we heard opening speeches from:
- Mr Ilari Rantakari, Chairman, European Movement Helsinki Region
- Dr Jean-Paul Doguet, President Eurocapitales International
- Ms Maarit Vierunen, Deputy Mayor, City of Helsinki
(click HERE to read the summary)
- Mr Samuel Tammekann, Acting Executive Director, European Movement in Finland
(click HERE to read the summary).
Then for our morning session, we had three conferences on "European Security":
• “Security in Europe and Finland”
Director, Finnish Institute in the Middle East, Dr Juha Mäkelä.
Click HERE to read the summary.
• “Europe and Global Challenges”
Director, Finnish Institute in the Middle East, Dr Juha Mäkelä.
Click HERE to read the summary.
• “Four Autonomies: Protecting Europe’s Own Agency in the World”
Acting Executive Director, European Movement in Finland, Mr Samuel Tammekann.
Click HERE to read the summary).
The afternoon session was devoted to "Defence, Budgets and Resilience":
• “Overview of Recent European Commission Proposals on Defence and Resilience”
Head of Media and Spokesperson for Finland, European Commission Representation in Finland, Mr Ismo Ulvila.
Click HERE to read the summary.
• “The Finnish Concept for Comprehensive Security”
Secretary-General, The Security Committee in Finland (MoD), Mr Petteri Korvala.
Click HERE to read the summary.
• “Greek Defense Policy and Greece’s Military Spending”
Chairman, Europe House Byron Athens, Mr Stavros Vardalas.
Click HERE to read the summary.
• “The Challenges of the French Military Budget for the Future”
President, Eurocapitales International; Chairman, Eurocapitales Paris; Post-GraduateProfessor, Dr Jean-Paul Doguet.
Click HERE to read the summary.
Mr Ilari Rantakari, President, European Movement Helsinki Region; Ambassador Emeritus, delivered the concluding remarks.
The afternoon session was followed by our fourth EUROCAPITALES International Annual General Meeting, the minutes of which you will find separately in the following event on our site.
In the evening, we had the pleasure of enjoying a Dinner Cruise along the shores of the Helsinki western archipelago and appreciated a delicious archipelago-style dinner.
Sunday June 14, we visited the UNESCO World Heritage Site Suomenlinna Sea Fortress.
We would like to express our deep gratitude to our Finnish oranisers, Ilari Rantakari and Jani Johansson, and all our members and partners.
The meeting was a success which we owe to the efficiency and hospitality of our Finnish friends and also thanks to the expert speakers of all the different speeches.
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