Finland PM apologises for friends’ topless kissing photo at her home amid partying backlash

Sanna Marin confirms the image – of an ex-Miss Finland contestant and another woman kissing while holding a ‘Finland’ sign – was taken at her residence

A video of the prime minister dancing and partying was leaked last week, and there are concerns that more photos and footage from her private life could emerge

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Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin speaks to the media in Helsinki on Tuesday. Photo: dpa

Published: 2:08am, 24 Aug 2022Updated: 8:12am, 24 Aug 2022

Finland’s prime minister Sanna Marin apologised on Tuesday for a controversial photo taken at her residence, less than a week after the 36-year-old sparked criticism with a video of her partying.

The picture circulated by Finnish media shows two women kissing, lifting their tops to bare their torsos and covering their breasts with a sign that says “Finland”.

Marin confirmed on Tuesday the picture was taken at her official residence in Kesaranta, after she attended a music festival that took place July 8-10.

“I think the picture is not appropriate, I apologise for it. Such a picture should not have been taken,” Marin told reporters in Helsinki. Marin said she had “friends” at her residence at the time “spending the evening” and “going to the sauna”.

Two friends of Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin kiss in a still image of a video taken in the prime minister’s office in her official residence, Kesäranta. The video was originally shared by one of the women, a former Miss Finland contestant. Screengrab: Twitter via @TRetrospective

The picture was first published on a TikTok account by a former Miss Finland contestant and social media influencer, who appears in the photo.

An editorial in the Nordic country’s largest newspaper Helsingin Sanomat on Tuesday said Marin did not appear to be “in control”, and more pictures and videos from her private life could end up in the public domain.