Urho Kekkonen

President of Finland

3 September 1900 Pielavesi, Grand Duchy of Finland, Russian Empire

31 August 1986(1986-08-31) (85) Helsinki, Finland

1 March 1956 – 27 January 1982

Eighth President of Finland (1956–1982) "Kekkonen" redirects here. For other uses, see Kekkonen (disambiguation). "UKK" redirects here. For other uses, see UKK (disambiguation). Urho KekkonenUrho Kekkonen in 19778th President of FinlandIn office 1 March 1956 – 27 January 1982Prime Minister List Karl-August Fagerholm V. J. Sukselainen Rainer von Fieandt Reino Kuuskoski Martti Miettunen Ahti Karjalainen Johannes Virolainen Rafael Paasio Mauno Koivisto Teuvo Aura Kalevi Sorsa Keijo Liinamaa Preceded by J. K. PaasikiviSucceeded by Mauno Koivisto21st Prime Minister of FinlandIn office 20 October 1954 – 3 March 1956PresidentJ. K. PaasikiviPreceded by Ralf TörngrenSucceeded by Karl-August FagerholmIn office 17 March 1950 – 17 November 1953PresidentJ. K. PaasikiviPreceded by Karl-August FagerholmSucceeded by Sakari Tuomioja Personal detailsBorn(1900-09-03 ) 3 September 1900 Pielavesi, Grand Duchy of Finland, Russian EmpireDied31 August 1986(1986-08-31) (aged 85) Helsinki, FinlandPolitical partyAgrarian League (1933–1965) Centre Party (1965–1982)Spouse(s)Sylvi KekkonenChildrenMatti, TaneliResidenceTamminiemiAlma materUniversity of HelsinkiProfessionLawyer, police officer, journalistSignature Urho Kaleva Kekkonen (pronounced  ( listen ) ; 3 September 1900 – 31 August 1986), often referred to by his initials UKK, was a Finnish politician who served as the eighth and longest-serving President of Finland from 1956 until 1982. He was the third and most recent president from the Agrarian League/Center Party. As head of state for nearly 26 years, he dominated Finnish politics, held a large amount of power, won his later elections with little opposition and has often been classified as an autocrat. Nevertheless, he remains a respected figure. As president, Kekkonen continued the "active neutrality" policy of his predecessor President Juho Kusti Paasikivi, a doctrine that came to be known as the "Paasikivi–Kekkonen line", under which Finland retained its independence while maintaining good relations and extensive trade with members of both NATO and the Warsaw Pact. Critical commentators referred to this policy of appeasement pejoratively as Finlandization. He hosted the European Conference on Security and Co-operation in Helsinki in 1975 and was considered a potential candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize that year. He is credited by Finnish historians for his foreign and trade policies, which allowed Finland's market economy to keep pace with Western Europe even with the Soviet Union as a neighbor, and for Finland to gradually take part in the European integration process. On the other hand, his perceived hunger for power, his divide-and-rule attitude in domestic politics and the lack of genuine political opposition, especially during the latter part of his presidency, significantly weakened Finnish democracy during his presidency. After Kekkonen's presidency, the reform of the Constitution of Finland was initiated by his successors to increase the power of the Parliament and the Prime Minister at the expense of the President. Before becoming president, he had served as Prime Minister of Finland (1950–53, 1954–56), Minister of Foreign Affairs (1952–53, 1954), Speaker of the Finnish Parliament (1948–50), Minister of Justice (1936–37, 1944–46, 1951) and Minister of the Interior (1937–1939, 1950–1951). In addition to his extensive political career, he was an enthusiastic writer who wrote humorous, informative columns (causerie) for the Suomen Kuvalehti magazine (edited by his long-time friend Ilmari Turja) under several pseudonyms, even during his presidency.