A Finnish court found two investigative journalists guilty of publishing state secrets in a decision announced on Friday.

The main author of the article was sentenced to pay an undisclosed fine based on a portion of his income. His co-author did not receive any punishment, the Helsinki District Court ruled.

Charges against a third defendant, a supervisor, were dropped. The verdict can be appealed.

The trial centered around an article published by the newspaper Helsingin Sanomat in December 2017. It revealed several pieces of information about military intelligence that had been classified to protect Finland's security.

"We are disappointed with the verdict," said Antero Mukka, the paper's editor-in-chief.

"Despite lenient outcomes, the damage to freedom of expression has already been done."

The in-depth article reported on the "organization, capability and procurement" of a military intelligence communications center in Jyvaskyla, 230 kilometers (142.92 miles) north of Helsinki.

"There were strong societal grounds for writing this article," said Sanoma Media group, which owns the newspaper.

At the time of publication, Finland was drafting new legislation on intelligence activities.

According to Sanoma Media, the aim of the new legislation "was to give intelligence organizations very broad powers to monitor network traffic, which would curtail citizens' fundamental rights."

But the court found that going into detail with classified information could only have been permissible on public interest grounds if it included "a significant disclosure," such as an example on "abuse of power or other unlawful activity by authorities."

According to the district court, the article had not contained such significant information.

While the published information did not "endanger Finland's external security," the information could not be regarded as "harmless."

Pavol Szalai, head of the EU desk at Reporters Without Borders, said the verdict was "very troubling."

When "a country ranked on the top of the World Press Freedom Index" prosecutes journalists for "reporting on national security issues," it sets "a dangerous precedent for press freedom internationally," he said.