Defence Sector News interviews Commodore Juha Kilpi, who recently concluded his service as the commander of the Nyland Brigade and is now assuming the role of defence attaché in Stockholm. Kilpi began his career as a coastal artillery officer and has previously served as the logistics chief within the navy.
The Nyland Brigade outside Ekenäs (Finland) is Finland's only Swedish-speaking unit and is responsible for the training of the country's coastal jaegers. They conduct regular exercises together with Swedish amphibious units.
Despite Juha Kilpi having limited knowledge of the Swedish language and no prior experience with the Nyland Brigade, his appointment as the commander of the unit proved to be successful.
For me, mastering the Swedish language as well as possible was of utmost importance. The Nyland Brigade is a critical resource for our defence forces, and communication is primarily conducted in Swedish. My partner is fully fluent in Swedish, so we communicated almost exclusively in Swedish at home during my language studies, which I undertook before assuming the position.What professional experiences do you have from Sweden previously?
My background in logistics within the navy has given me many opportunities to collaborate closely with Swedish colleagues. Additionally, I have previously worked at NATO in Brussels, where I also encountered Swedish representatives. Cooperation with them has always been easy and smooth, says the new attaché and continues:
I served as the commander of the Nyland Brigade during three historically significant periods, each with its unique challenges: the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and Finland's NATO application. Shortly after my arrival, the pandemic became a reality, and all exercises with Swedish amphibious units ceased for about a year and a half. When we finally resumed cooperation, I was impressed by how smoothly it went. After just a few hours, it felt as if we had never been apart.
What do you think made it go so smoothly after all that time?
I believe it is because the units had trained together for such a long time that genuine relationships had developed. Many of us also became friends outside of work - this showed me the importance of building a common culture.
What does your new position as defence attaché entail?
My task is to promote and maintain relations between our defence forces. Being a defence attaché in a country where we already have such close cooperation means the work is more about military diplomacy.
What do you aim to achieve during your time in Sweden?
My main mission is to establish and strengthen contacts with various parts of the Swedish Armed Forces and the defence industry. My time here is still too short to be more specific, but I am really looking forward to it. Stockholm is a beautiful city, and I have always appreciated working with Swedish colleagues. I hope and look forward to Sweden becoming a NATO member as soon as possible. I want to emphasise that Finnish membership is not complete without Sweden.
If I may offer a piece of advice, it would be to consider how to establish collaborations with the Finnish industry. I am more than willing to act as a door-opener between Swedish companies and Finnish companies or authorities to facilitate cooperation.
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