A government press conference on Friday was tight-lipped about the possible drone threat in the Uusimaa region. Officials did not confirm that the possible drone incursion originated from Ukraine, and said no stray drone has been found.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said authorities did not overreact when they advised people to stay indoors and temporarily suspended air traffic.
"If there is a clear risk that a drone carrying weapons could enter the most densely populated part of Finland, I do not think raising readiness can be considered an overreaction," Orpo said of the emergency alert issued around 4am on Friday.
"We can turn this question around. What if we had not issued a warning and something had happened?" he asked reporters.
Compared with previous drone threats, the situation was different, said Air Force commander Timo Herranen. "We had justified reason to believe there was a higher risk that larger drones carrying heavier explosive payloads could stray into Finland."
Speaking to Yle, former Finnish Defence Forces research chief Jyri Kosola said the drone warning likely came either from Ukraine or Nato allies.
Finland received advance information from allies and partners at around 1am about a drone carrying an explosive payload that was roughly 500 kilometres away and potentially heading toward Finland.
There were about three hours until the drone could have reached Finnish airspace.
"That means the warning came either from Ukraine or Nato. It shows that military cooperation is working," Kosola said.
Room for improvement
While Orpo urged people to download the 112 app to receive emergency alerts, he said it is clear that a new text-message-based alert system will need to be introduced.
Technical issues in the app prevented people from receiving a warning message via the 112 app.
"A new text-message-based alert system must be implemented without delay," Orpo said.
He added that official guidance needs to be clearer. Citizens headed to work and school should know more precisely what they are able to do.
The PM said there is a risk that similar situations will continue to occur as long as the war in Ukraine continues.
Kyiv has carried out extensive drone operations targeting sites in Russia, and several of these drones have strayed into southeastern Finland this spring.
"We have informed Ukraine that under no circumstances is it acceptable for drones to stray into Finland," Orpo said.
At the same time, he emphasised that Ukraine still has the right to defend itself.
Russia, meanwhile, said it shot down 355 Ukrainian drones overnight into Friday across multiple locations in Russia.
