A-Issue Threatens Finnish Coalition

HELSINKI, Finland — This nation’s center-left government may resign next week unless one of the coalition parties withdraws a proposal to scrap nuclear energy by the year 2000, Prime Minister Kalevi Sorsa said Friday.

The proposal by the Rural Party, seen by Sorsa as a vote of no-confidence, is to be considered in Parliament on Tuesday and the party must take it back to avoid a government crisis or leave the coalition, political analysts said.

Finland has two nuclear power plants, with Swedish and Soviet reactors, and appeared set to buy another reactor from the Soviet Union before public opinion swung against nuclear energy after the April 26 Chernobyl disaster.