Minister of Defence (Finland)

Minister of Defence of the Republic of Finland
Puolustusministeri Försvarsminister
Flag of the Minister of Defence
Incumbent Antti Häkkänen since 20 June 2023
Ministry of Defence
Member of	Cabinet
Seat	Helsinki, Finland
Nominator	Prime Minister
Appointer	President
Term length	Four years (de facto)
Formation	1918; 106 years ago (1918)
First holder	Wilhelm Thesleff
Website	www.defmin.fi/english

The Minister of Defence (Finnish: puolustusministeri, Swedish: försvarsminister) is a member of the Finnish Council of State. As the head of the Ministry of Defence, the minister is responsible for the administration of national defence. The ministry is headquartered in Helsinki. The current Minister of Defence is Antti Häkkänen.

From June to November 1918 the post was called Chief of the War Department, and from then until 1922 the post was called the Minister of War.

The President of the Republic is the commander-in-chief of the Finnish Defence Forces. The commander of the military forces is the Chief of Defence.