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Finland’s accession to NATO in 2023 marks a turning point for how the country approaches defence cooperation as joining NATO requires new members to adapt to the expectation of collective defence. Contrary to the past strategy of military non-alignment, the Finnish Defence Forces (FDF) are now expected to adjust to fulfil these new obligations. The FDF, traditionally focused on national territorial defence, must transition to become an active security provider for others. Little academic attention has been given to how cultural factors condition how the FDF will approach defence cooperation within NATO. This thesis seeks to address this gap by answering the research question: How does the strategic culture of the Finnish Defence Forces condition its approach to defence cooperation within NATO?

Drawing on strategic culture theory and the Cultural Topography methodology this thesis aims to map out the strategic culture of the FDF on defence cooperation within NATO. The issue-based analytical approach allows for the distilling of critical cultural factors that inform boundaries of acceptable behaviour. A total of 72 various pieces of cultural data such as military doctrines, training materials, leadership speeches and military magazine articles were analysed to form the strategic cultural map across the categories of identity, norms, values and perceptual lens. The findings conclude that the FDF’s strategic culture continues to be strongly conditioned by a national territorial defence mindset. Defence cooperation within NATO is welcomed, especially in circumstances where it contributes towards strengthening Finland’s national or regional security.