20 Facts About Ahti Karjalainen

Ahti Kalle Samuli Karjalainen was a Finnish economist and politician.

Ahti Karjalainen was a member of the Agrarian League and served two terms as Prime Minister of Finland.

Ahti Karjalainen is better known for his period as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland.

Ahti Karjalainen was born in Hirvensalmi as the youngest of four children.

Ahti Karjalainen's father was farmer Anselm Karjalainen and his mother was Anna Lyydia Viherlehto.

Ahti Karjalainen studied at the lukio in Mikkeli from 1935 until 1939, then was drafted into the army in the Winter War, serving in a radio reconnaissance unit.

In 1944, after being discharged, Ahti Karjalainen entered the University of Helsinki, where he obtained his bachelor's degree in political science in 1946.

Ahti Karjalainen subsequently obtained his licentiate degree in 1958 and defended his doctorate in political science at the same university in 1959.

Ahti Karjalainen's dissertation was titled "The relationships between the monetary politics of the Bank of Finland and the state economy from 1811 to 1953 mainly regarding liquidity analysis".

Ahti Karjalainen served as the Minister of the Treasury, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Trade and Industry for half a decade from 1957, forming his first government on 13 April 1962.

Ahti Karjalainen served a second term as prime minister from 15 July 1970 to 29 October 1971.

Ahti Karjalainen first entered the Parliament of Finland in 1966, serving as a member for 13 years.

In 1981 Ahti Karjalainen put his name forward to be presidential candidate of the Centre Party, but lost to Johannes Virolainen.

Outside politics, Ahti Karjalainen had a successful career with the Bank of Finland.

Ahti Karjalainen served as director of its research facility from 1953 to 1957, and was elected to its Board of Management in 1958.

Ahti Karjalainen served as Deputy Governor of the Bank of Finland from 1979, acting chairman of the board from 1979 to 1982 and as governor from 1982 to 1983.

Ahti Karjalainen served as chairman of the Finnish-Soviet Economic Cooperation Commission from 1967 until 1983.

Ahti Karjalainen's alcoholism was the cause of his dismissal as Governor of the Bank of Finland and the chairmanship of the Finnish-Soviet Economic Cooperation Commission in 1983.

In 1986, Ahti Karjalainen was offered honorary membership of the Centre Party, but refused to accept the title on the basis of the treatment he had previously received.

Ahti Karjalainen died of pancreatic cancer at the Riistavuori retirement home in Helsinki on 7 September 1990.