HELSINKI - Finland is open to discussions on France's proposal to extend its nuclear umbrella across Europe, the Finnish foreign minister said recently, while adding it would not replace U.S. nuclear deterrence.

Speaking in an interview with Kyodo News in Helsinki on Aug. 13, Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen noted that Europe is "very much investing" in conventional defense and deterrence across the continent, with Finland open to discussing how France's nuclear arsenal could be used for deterrence in the long term.

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