New Premier Elected After Iraq Scandal
Finland’s parliament elected Matti Vanhanen as the new prime minister, a week after a scandal over the Iraq war forced the government of Anneli Jaatteenmaki to resign.
Jaatteenmaki stepped down amid accusations she lied about the leak of sensitive political information about Finland’s Iraq policy. All the members of the previous Cabinet were renamed except for Vanhanen, who was replaced as defense minister by Seppo Kaariainen.
Vanhanen, 47, is a former journalist with a reputation as a European Union policy expert.
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