President of the Republic of Finland Alexander Stubb visited the town of Kouvola in South-Eastern Finland on Wednesday 11 February 2026.
The day began in Vekaranjärvi, where President Stubb inspected the Karelia Brigade. The Karelia Brigade is the largest brigade-level unit in the Army and it contains all of the branches of the Army. During the inspection, the President learned about the brigade’s activities, followed the training of conscripts and met with personnel. “The Defence Forces play a vital role in our comprehensive security and in shaping our foreign policy,” said President Stubb, thanking both the conscripts and the personnel for their work. “I can safely say that I sleep very peacefully at night. Why? Because of you. Thank you.”
Next, President Stubb visited Kouvolan Yhteislyseo, a high school with around 1,200 students, offering a varied range of courses in the general programme, as well as specialised programmes focusing on sports or studies in English. After some wonderful musical performances by the students, the programme continued with an interview with the President. The students asked President Stubb questions such as how he sees Finland’s future with regard to young people, what Finland’s strengths and weaknesses are in foreign policy, and why he believes culture is important.
In the afternoon the President visited Kouvolan Lakritsi, where he was given an overview of the company’s history and operations. Originally developed for medicinal use, liquorice has been produced in Kouvola since 1960. During a tour of the production facilities, the President got to see the various stages of liquorice manufacturing and taste different liquorice varieties. At the end of the visit, he met with the company’s staff.
The last visit of the day went to the Veturi shopping centre, where Kouvola Youth Council members Sinishash Nio and Roki Niemi interviewed the President in front of an audience of some 1,200 people. The first question concerned the President’s impressions of his day in Kouvola. The young interviewers also asked him what he thinks about the future of military service, how to promote economic growth and create jobs in Finland, and what place Finland has in the changing world order. After the interview, President Stubb met with Kouvola residents to be photographed with them.
