Russia warns Finland joining NATO is ‘ill-conceived’ and will ‘have a negative effect’
Mike Brest
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Finland’s ascension into NATO is a blow to Russia, which had sought to fracture the alliance through its invasion of Ukraine.
Both Finland and Sweden sought entry into NATO last year, both of which had been neutral, amid the first months of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Finland had adopted a position of neutrality after its defeat by the Soviets in World War II, though the country’s ascension into the alliance this week doubled NATO’s border with Russia, angering the Kremlin.
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The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned that it will respond by placing additional defense capabilities along Russia’s northwestern border with Finland, depending on NATO’s military infrastructure and weapons positioned in the country.
“By joining NATO, Finland has given up on its unique identity and lost its independence, which for decades gave it a special status in international affairs. Helsinki’s policy of military non-alignment has long served its national interests and was a major confidence-building factor in the Baltic region and across the European continent,” the ministry said in a statement released on Tuesday.
The border between the NATO alliance and Russia doubling “constitutes a major shift for Northern Europe, which used to be one of the most stable regions in the world,” the ministry’s statement continued, implying the move could destabilize the region.
Finland’s ratification is the fastest in NATO’s modern history, but Turkey and Hungary have objected to Sweden’s application.
“History will tell whether Finland needed to take this ill-conceived step, undertaken by the country’s government without taking into consideration what the people think about it by holding a referendum and carefully examining the consequences of NATO membership,” the statement added. “We strongly believe that this is the case. Make no mistake, Finland’s accession to NATO will have a negative effect on the bilateral relations between Russia and Finland.”
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U.S. officials celebrated Finland’s ascension into the alliance, while Secretary of State Antony Blinken went as far as to say Russian President Vladimir Putin is responsible for Finland’s inclusion.
“I’m tempted to say this is maybe the one thing we can thank Mr. Putin for because he once again here has precipitated something he claims to want to prevent by Russia’s aggression causing many countries to believe that they have to do more to look out for their own defense and to make sure they could deter possible Russian aggression going forward,” he said during a press conference from NATO Headquarters in Brussels.