She received praise for her cabinet’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and her vocal support of Ukraine in the last year had increased her international visibility. She also saw her country become the 31st member of NATO.
“Time to move on,” Finnish public broadcaster YLE quoted her as saying. “I am eager to step into a new role. I also believe that it can benefit the whole of Finland.”
In April,Finland joined the NATO military alliance,dealing a major blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin with a historic realignment of Europe’s post-Cold War security landscape triggered by Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
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Finland had adopted neutrality after its defeat by the Soviets in World War II,but its leaders signalled they wanted to join NATO after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine sent a shiver of fear through its neighbours.
“I believe that I can serve those voters (in Finland) well and maybe even better in the new assignment,” Marin told a press conference as she announced her departure from the 200-seat Finnish parliament Eduskunta.
Earlier this month,she stepped down as head of the Social Democratic Party.