Finland finally joins NATO despite warnings from Moscow

Finland has officially become the 31st member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Finland officially joined the US led NATO bloc despite repeated warnings from Russia, which has vowed countermeasures.

Moscow plans to bolster its military capacity in its western and Northwestern regions, near the border with the Nordic country, should the Alliance deploys any additional troops or equipment to its new member.

At the NATO headquarters in Brussels, a ceremony was held on Tuesday during which NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, Finnish Foreign Minister, Pekka Haavisto and the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, concluded the final formalities of Finland's accession to the US led transatlantic military alliance with  media in attendance.

• Finland has officially become the 31st member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO.
  

  Finland joins NATO

  Finland has officially become the 31st member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Separately Finland's President, Sauli Niinistö, also confirmed his country's membership stating that "Finland has today become a member of the Defence Alliance NATO, the era of military non alignment in our history has come to an end, a new era begins".

He went on to say that "Each country maximizes its own security, so does Finland, at the same time, NATO membership strengthens our international position and room for maneuver. As a partner we have long actively participated in NATO activities. In the future Finland will make a contribution to NATO's collective deterrence and defense".

• Finland has announced its plan to procure the joint US-Israeli-made David’s Sling long-range missile defense system, after joint the US-led military alliance NATO.
  

  After joining NATO, Finland plans to buy Israeli missile defense systems

  Finland

In an apparent reference to Russia's deep concerns regarding NATO's expansion, the Finnish President stressed that Finland's membership is not targeted against anyone, nor does it change the foundations or objectives of Finland's foreign and security policy.

He described Finland as a stable and predictable Nordic country that seeks peaceful resolution of disputes.

Russia's reaction to the new membership was strong with the Kremlin warning that Finland's NATO membership would force Moscow to take countermeasures.

The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said "the Kremlin believes that this is another aggravation of the situation the NATO expansion is an encroachment on our security the interests of the Russian Federation. This is exactly how we perceive it. We will take countermeasures to ensure our own tactical and strategic security".

• Russia has denounced as "a dangerous historic mistake" Finland's membership in the NATO, saying the move would weaken security in Northern Europe and increase the risk of conflict.
  

  Finland’s NATO entry to increase risk of conflict in Europe: Russia

  Russia has denounced as "a dangerous historic mistake" Finland

He also stressed that the countermeasures that Moscow deems necessary would be taken, adding that the Russian armed forces would report on the response to NATO actions in the Nordic country.

Finland's ascension to NATO, as one of Western Europe's most potent wartime militaries, adds to the US led military alliance as well as other Nordic countries intelligence and border surveillance abilities.

Helsinki brings with it a well equipped and trained, active armed force of about 30,000. It can also call on 250,000 reserves. Finland's ascension also doubles the length of NATO's border with Russia. The membership would guarantee the country's access to the resources of the entire alliance in the event of an attack on the country.

• The accession marks the end of a process that began last May when Finland and neighboring Sweden abandoned their longstanding policies of neutrality and nonalignment after Russia’s military operation in Ukraine.
  

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  Finland is set to formally become a member of the NATO military alliance on Tuesday in a historic shift that will end its years of “military non-alignment" and double the US-led alliance

Russian President Vladimir Putin has on several occasions cited the post Soviet expansion of NATO eastward toward Russia's borders as a major reason for the "special military operation" he declared in Ukraine on the 24th of February  2022. Key to a list of Russian demands from the west prior to the war was a guarantee that Kyiv would never be part of NATO.

Fearing that they might be targeted next after Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago, Finland and Sweden applied last year to join the US led transatlantic military pact.

In April 2022 the Kremlin warned that it would deploy nuclear weapons in the Baltic Sea region If the two European states joined the 30 member military alliance.

All 30 allies signed Finland's and Sweden's accession protocols. Turkey and Hungary had delayed the process for months but have finally agreed to the membership of Finland.

• “Whatever the process is, we will run that process. We will do our part. We will keep our promise,” Erdogan said, marking the clearest sign yet that Turkey will approve Helsinki’s NATO membership bid.
  

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  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says his country may soon approve Finland’s application to join the NATO military alliance.

Ankara has sought guarantees and assurances from the two Nordic states, notably on tackling what it calls extremism; however, the demands of Hungary have never been explicitly laid out.

Moscow contends that the latest expansion of the block has greatly damaged the security situation in the whole of Northern Europe, which, for decades, had been one of the most stable regions in the world.

Russian diplomats are of the view that the move by Helsinki has done harm to Finland's own international stance.

By joining NATO, Finland has given up its unique identity and lost its independence, forfeiting the special status it enjoyed in international affairs stemming from its decades long policy of non alignment.

Moscow says Finland became a minor NATO member without the possibility to influence any decisions, thus, It has lost its ability to have a say in international affairs.

• Russia and the United States have "already passed through" the Cold War stage in their relations and are now in the "phase of a hot conflict"
  

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