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Gun 'em Down! Finland, Sweden Getting Tough on Drones

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The two Nordic nations have been considering giving their respective militaries the right to shoot down drones, citing "significant" threats from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Following a Swedish government survey that proposes empowering the defense forces to shoot down or otherwise neutralize drones, the Finnish government has proposed the same idea.

According to the Finnish government, the Armed Forces should be allowed to intervene if unauthorized UAVs pose a threat to defense operations, the daily newspaper Hufvudstadsbladet reported. The proposal has been submitted to parliament.

The Finnish government stressed that security policy changes require the military to expand its powers to be able to deal with hybrid threats. The Finnish Defense Ministry, in turn, described the threat of UAVs as "significant," because it model aircraft and drones could be used to disrupt military operations.

As for shooting down drones in public places, the Armed Forces must agree on an intervention with the police, the proposal said.

READ MORE: Special Delivery: Finnish Prisons Struggle to Stop Drug-Smuggling Drones

Earlier this spring, a Swedish government investigation encompassing representatives of all parliamentary parties proposed allowing security personnel and the military to shoot or otherwise incapacitating hostile drones approaching sensitive objects or military exercises. Electronic equipment was also proposed as deterring factor.

"Drones can carry both cameras and weapons and can do a lot of damage to a protected object," Margareta Bergström, the chair of the committee for enhanced protection and total defense, told Swedish Radio.

Previously, unidentified drones have appeared during several military exercises in recent years, for instance last year's major exercise Aurora. Drones have also been sighted near important buildings, where unauthorized persons are not admitted in any form whatsoever.

READ MORE: The Robots Are Coming! Norway Fears Unmanned Warfare

Martin Hagström, research director at the Total Defense Research Institute (FOI), has followed the development of the drone industry for several years.

"Every time a technology develops or changes, it must be clarified in the law," Hagström said. "There has always been an interest in observing other nations' military exercises for information retrieval, it's only natural, no wonder. And once you can remotely control a camera, you can stand further ahead. However, it's difficult to distinguish whether it's merely the curious public," Hagström explained.

In recent years, Finland and Sweden have adopted a package of various drone control measures to set rules for an ever-expanding field, including "no-drone zones." The Interior Ministry estimates that there are some tens of thousands of commercially available drones in Finland.

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