In addition to doubling alliance’s border with Russia, Finn joined NATO
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Finns are now a member of NATO and this is great news for the alliance. Our defense alliance has gained a good friend with #Finland.
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In the aftermath of the invasion of Ukrainian, public support for joining NATO went up. Sanna Marin said that everything changed when Russia invaded Ukraine. In Sweden, the mindset of the people changed very dramatically.
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In a statement, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken welcomed the new member and said, “Finland is stronger and safer within the alliance, and the alliance is stronger and safer with Finland as its ally.”
“We will strengthen our military capabilities in the west and northwest if NATO members deploy forces and equipment on Finnish territory,” Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov reiterated that Finland’s accession will force Moscow to “take counter-measures to ensure our own security, both tactically and strategically.”
Prior to Tuesday, Russia shared about 1,215 kilometers (755 miles) of land border with five NATO members. NATO has a land border with Russia.
We show the world that he failed and that intimidation doesn’t work. Instead of less NATO, he has achieved the opposite – more NATO – and our door remains firmly open,” he added.
It includes the protection offered by NATO’s Article 5 principle, which states that an attack on one member of NATO is an attack on all members. It has been a vital component of the alliance since 1949, when it was established as a counterbalance to the Soviet Union.
Helsinki has also signed on the F-35 stealth fighter program, which will allow its air force to work smoothly with NATO members including the US, UK, Norway, Italy, Canada, Poland, Denmark and the Netherlands.
A November report from the Washington-based Wilson Center lists three key areas where Finland benefits NATO: reserve forces, technology access and artillery forces.
The Wilson Center report also noted Finland’s strong cyber security record, pointing out the country is home to Nokia, “a major provider of 5G infrastructure,” and one of three major providers of 5G infrastructure in the world, along with Sweden’s Ericsson and China’s Huawei.
The Finns have trained over a million reserves who can act in thearmed forces. The wartime strength of Finnish forces is 280,000 troops, it says.
Sweden is trying to win the bid. On Monday, Stoltenberg said that the accession ofFinland was good for Sweden and that it should be celebrated.
The expansion of NATO, which was celebrated at the 74th anniversary, represents a strategic defeat for the President of Russia, which has been blocking the expansion.
Mr. Niinisto said that the moment was a great one for his country. History has many important moments, he added, but “this is the day most historic to us and to our partners.” Russia tried to restrict Finland’s freedom of choice and “tried to create a sphere around them,” he said. We aren’t a sphere.
A new Finnish government, still to be negotiated after an election on Sunday, will have to decide whether Finland will accept foreign troops on its soil, for example — NATO now has troops in other frontline states with Russia — or even nuclear weapons belonging to allies.
The President of Turkey, who faces re-election on May 14, criticized Sweden for not being aggressive enough in fighting terrorism, specifically targeting those living in the country that he believes supported terrorists. Sweden is also being blocked by Hungary.
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That will involve looking not just at Ukraine’s immediate defense needs against Russian forces, but also how to help Kyiv modernize and align its military with NATO standards and doctrines.
