A FINNISH member of parliament has congratulated the SNP on a “huge victory” in the Scottish parliamentary elections - and said he will launch an initiative to have Scotland join the Nordic Council as an observer.

The news will likely be greeted enthusiastically by the SNP, which has been in talks in recent months with a view to extend Scotland’s overseas ties.

A Scottish Government spokesperson told The National in February that they were “committed to exploring opportunities for even greater policy and knowledge exchange”.

They said that then Cabinet Secretary Michael Russell had met with the Nordic Council of Ministers secretary general Paula Lehtomaki to discuss working more closely and regularly together around the challenges and ambitions that Scotland shares with Nordic countries.

READ MORE: Dear Scotland, you’d be very welcome to join the Nordic Council

In March 2021, it was announced that Ken Macintosh, the Holyrood presiding officer, had met with Bertel Haarder, President of the Nordic Council, to discuss working together at COP26.

The details have yet to be finalised but may include joint events at the Nordic Pavilion in Glasgow, where the Nordic Council will host several events.

The Nordic Council was established in 1952 and is the official inter-parliamentary body in the Nordic Region. It has 87 elected members from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, as well as from the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland, an autonomous region of Finland.

Now, Mikko Karna, a Finnish MP for Lapland from the Centre Party Parliamentary Group, has said that he will “launch an initiative” to get Scotland observer status on the Nordic Council.

On Twitter today, he wrote: “Congratulations @theSNP @NicolaSturgeon for your huge victory in #Scotland elections! I am confident you will vote for independence soon after the pandemic is over.

“In the meantime, I will launch an initiative to Nordic Council: we will ask Scotland to join the council as an observer.”

The status would help Scotland to forge ties with the Nordic nations and promote the nation’s interests at the council.

Karna’s tweet has been met with much gratitude from Scots on social media. The SNP has been approached for comment.