Helsinki - The commander of the Finnish defence forces Monday expressed doubts about Finland signing an international ban against cluster weapons.

"A ban against cluster weapons would seriously weaken Finland's ability to defend itself," Admiral Juhani Kaskeala, commander of the Finnish defence forces, said in a speech.

Kaskeala said that so-called precision weapons would be expensive and are perhaps not as effective as cluster weapons, the Finnish news agency STT.

Finland is not a member of any military alliance, but regardless of that "Finland is responsible for our own defence," the commander said in his speech.

Helsnki - Finnish voters remain opposed to a possible membership in NATO, according to a new survey published Thursday.

The poll - conducted after the recent conflict between Russia and Georgia - suggested 57 per cent of Finns opposed joining NATO, 23 per cent were in favour while the remaining 20 per cent were undecided.

A year ago, those undecided were on 16 per cent, the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper that commissioned the Gallup survey said. About 1,000 people were polled by telephone September 2-11.

Helsinki - Finnish President Tarja Halonen on Friday formally ratified the European Union reform treaty. Parliament approved the Lisbon Treaty in June with a clear majority.

Halonen also urged the regional parliament of the Aland islands to ratify the treaty. The islands located in the Baltic Sea between Finland and Sweden have autonomous status and constitute Finland's smallest province.

More than 90 per cent of the some 27,000 inhabitants are Swedish- speaking.

While the Aland parliament, known as the Lagting, is currently debating the treaty its consent is not "a prerequisite for the (Finnish) ratification," the Finnish government said.

Helsinki/Vienna - Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb, current chairman of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), said Tuesday that Russia "violates fundamental OSCE principles" by recognizing two Georgian separatist regions.

Condemning Moscow's decision to accept the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Stubb said "Russia should follow OSCE principles by respecting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia."

A special meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council has been called for Wednesday, a spokesperson of the Vienna-based organization said.

Stubb also called on Russia to withdraw its troops from Georgia immediately, and to implement the ceasefire.

Helsinki - Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb is slated to travel to Georgia on Thursday, the Finnish Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.

Finland currently holds the chair of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) that was slated to deploy more military observers in Georgia and near the breakway region of South Ossetia.

Stubb is due to meet with President Mikheil Saakashvili, the OSCE mission and also to discuss humanitarian needs in the region.

Helsinki - Claims of poor quality welding work at a Finnish nuclear reactor under construction were rejected Wednesday by the Finnish nuclear watchdog.

The Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) said allegations of "faulty" checks of the welding work being built at Olkiluoto, south-western Finland were "false."

A week ago, environmental group Greenpeace cited "confidential documents" for its call to halt work on the reactor.