The United States and Finland signed a Technology Prosperity Deal in Washington on Thursday, a memorandum of understanding that ties the two countries together across artificial intelligence, quantum computing, energy, space and a new generation of Arctic icebreakers. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Finland's Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen signed the deal at the Department of State, and signed a separate Critical Minerals Framework at the same ceremony.
The agreement builds on the science and technology agreement the two countries have had since 1995, and its stated purpose is to strengthen industrial cooperation and speed emerging technologies from the laboratory into deployment — global connectivity, quantum advantage, energy leadership, advanced semiconductors and shipbuilding modernization among them. It creates no legally binding obligations and commits neither country to spend money; the document says both of those things plainly, and puts the follow-up work in a joint committee.
On artificial intelligence and connectivity, the two sides intend to develop and export a trusted technology stack — hardware, models, software, applications and network equipment — and to finance its adoption in third countries, so that the systems being installed around the world come from trusted suppliers. They will strengthen research into 5G and 6G networks and work together in the bodies that set global telecommunications standards, including the International Telecommunication Union and 3GPP. On quantum technology, the work runs through national laboratories and quantum institutions in both countries: developing algorithms and hybrid quantum-classical computing, commercializing cryogenics and precision instrumentation, training the next generation of quantum scientists and engineers, and moving systems onto post-quantum cryptography standards before today's encryption becomes breakable.
The energy section covers civil nuclear power — speeding the commercial deployment of American and Finnish reactors, including small modular reactors, with the two regulators harmonizing their rules — along with geothermal energy, fusion research, energy storage and advanced manufacturing such as rare-earth-free magnets and advanced batteries. The space section deepens cooperation on exploration and commercial space activity, including potential collaboration on future Artemis lunar surface missions. A defence section pursues joint research and pilot projects to carry dual-use technologies from demonstration into operational use, and a biotechnology section covers precision medicine and securing health supply chains.
Finland's Minister of Economic Affairs, Sakari Puisto, said: “Finland has top-tier expertise in a number of strategically important technology sectors. Collaboration with US companies and research institutes is important for the commercialisation of new technologies and for maintaining scientific excellence. The TPD will further expand our long-standing cooperation.” Speaking at the ceremony, Valtonen pointed to how fast the economic relationship is already growing: trade in goods and services between the two countries has risen by more than 60 percent in recent years, and American direct investment in Finland has more than doubled. Rubio highlighted Finland's expertise in mining, refining and processing critical minerals — the materials that underpin everything from semiconductors and batteries to defence systems and energy infrastructure.
The Arctic is where the deal meets steel. The memorandum recognizes Finland's established leadership in icebreaker design and construction and commits both countries to accelerate the modernization of the United States' icebreaker fleet under the ICE Pact — the icebreaker partnership the United States, Canada and Finland launched in 2024 — using Finnish expertise to design, build and deliver the Coast Guard's next-generation Arctic Security Cutters. It also covers Arctic operations, ice navigation and maritime domain awareness, and better Arctic connectivity, from satellite coverage at high latitudes to subsea cables linking North America with Northern Europe.
That shipbuilding programme is already under way. Under a memorandum the two countries signed in October 2025, the Coast Guard is acquiring up to 11 Arctic Security Cutters in a programme a White House official valued at about $6.1 billion: the first ships are being built in Finland, and the follow-on cutters are being built in American yards, including Bollinger in Louisiana and Davie's facilities in Texas, with the first delivery targeted for 2028. The need is not abstract. The Coast Guard today operates three icebreakers, and its only heavy icebreaker, Polar Star, entered service in 1976. Russia operates the world's largest polar fleet, and China is building its own — which is why an Arctic ally that designs and builds the world's icebreakers matters to Washington.
For Americans, what the deal supports is straightforward: shipbuilding work and skills in American yards as icebreaker production moves onshore, more secure supply chains for the chips, batteries and defence systems that American households and the American military depend on, and a stronger American presence in an Arctic where rival powers are already operating. Finland, a NATO ally that guards a long border with Russia, brings the icebreaker know-how and mineral-processing expertise; the United States brings the market and the investment.
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