Finland

2022 - 4 - 13

Putin's bullying backfires as Finland and Sweden edge closer to ... (CNN)

By invading Ukraine, Vladimir Putin wanted to bring his neighbor to heel and make the West think twice about expanding alliances towards Russia's borders.

This would take a very long time and could also face stiff opposition from Hungary, which is already in a nasty battle with Brussels over its violations of the rule of law, causing the EU to propose suspending central funding to Budapest. "We have repeatedly said that the alliance itself is more of a tool for confrontation. The only serious objection could come from Hungary, whose leader is close with Putin, but NATO officials think it would be able to twist Prime Minister Viktor Orban's arm. Finland's foreign minister Pekka Haavisto said Monday that it was "important" that neighboring Sweden was following a "similar process" which he expects to take time. But for now, as that unity largely holds, it is clear that Putin's desire to belittle the Western alliance has backfired -- and that the strongman has secured pariah status for his nation, possibly for years to come. Nor has Putin's invasion motivated Ukraine to pull back from its desire for closer integration with the West. While the country is unlikely to join NATO, its efforts to join the European Union have accelerated since the start of the war.

Sweden wins the NATO lottery (POLITICO.eu)

In recent months, though, polls have shown both countries to be increasingly keen on joining NATO, with Swedes consistently more eager to do so than their ...

Sweden, which was for decades on the fence regarding NATO membership, is being presented with an application process so attractive it’s virtually impossible to turn down. Both have rock-solid rule-of-law credentials and would add military heft to the alliance — Sweden’s anemic defense spending of recent years notwithstanding. To date, all that Sweden has done is state that it’s open to considering NATO membership, while the governing Social Democrats have decided to conduct a “security review.” Compare this to the dogged pushing, lobbying, begging, reforming, investing and training the Baltic states and every other post-Cold War NATO joiner had to undertake to be admitted. But it has also presented Sweden with the most incredible opportunity in terms of its potential accession to NATO. By referring to the Finns, they could avoid an issue that would cause internal division in the party and aggravate Russia.

Russian Forces Appear to Move Military Equipment to Finland ... (Newsweek)

The reported movement of coastal defense missile systems comes after Russia warned Finland against joining NATO.

Towards the end of the 43-second video, the person holding the camera focuses on a street sign which gives directions to Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Russian forces appear to have moved military vehicles near the country's border with Finland in unverified footage. Russian Forces Appear to Move Military Equipment to Finland Border in Video

Eying Russia, Finland and Sweden edge closer to a NATO future (EURACTIV)

Finland and Sweden are edging closer to joining NATO. Helsinki is expected to produce a report on the country's security policy this Thursday (13 April), ...

“We have repeatedly said that the alliance itself is more of a tool for confrontation. As such, they have options when it comes to cooperation. “All indications are that Finland’s government will decide to apply for NATO membership. Finland and Sweden have so far pursued policies of military non-alignment. This is not an alliance that provides peace and stability, and further expansion of the alliance, of course, will not lead to more stability on the European continent,” Peskov said. If there is a clear majority in favour of NATO membership, the government and the president are expected to decide on a potential application.

Finland Finishes White Paper Set to Kick Off NATO Debates (Bloomberg)

Finland is set to kick off a process that is likely to culminate in an application by Russia's Nordic neighbor to join the defense alliance NATO.

Russia 'moves missiles towards new country' (NEWS.com.au)

Unverified footage appears to show defence missiles being driven along a road that leads to Finnish capital Helsinki.

“I think we will end the discussion before midsummer,” she added. The Kremlin has pledged to “rebalance the situation” in the event of Finland joining NATO. “Finland has always tried to stay away from the grey zone,” Stubb said, but he believes that Finland has the resilience to withstand potential Russian aggression or hybrid attacks. But Russia’s invasion “changed something in Europe in a way that can’t be changed back”, he told AFP, and Kontta recently announced that he now believes it is time to seek to join the alliance. Despite receiving “all sorts of feedback” from the public and his fellow MPs over his stance, Mustajarvi insists he has “thought this through to the end and so far I don’t see a reason to change my position”. Like the majority of his parliamentary colleagues, the 32-year-old used to think that NATO membership was “something that we don’t need at the moment”.

Finland and Sweden joining NATO could put Trump's GOP in the hot ... (The Washington Post)

For several weeks, there have been signs that Russia's invasion of Ukraine could backfire for President Vladimir Putin in one key respect: by bringing NATO ...

But for a guy who made questioning NATO a calling card — and whose views on the subject were often outside the party’s mainstream — it would be an important development that could result in some uneasy dynamics in his party. Admitting Finland and Sweden would be a strong repudiation of Putin, but it would also no doubt be provocative. That’s a prospect that remains real and important if he’s elected in 2024. The vote wound up being strongly in favor, 80 to 19, but there was plenty of uncertainty at the outset. … You need not look far into the past to see studied minds cautioning about a situation much like the one we find ourselves in today. During the 2015 campaign, he offered an indifferent response about Ukraine’s potential membership. Republicans did challenge Trump’s NATO skepticism during his presidency. “That causes this senator a great deal of concern.” But the former presents some important lessons about how an addition of Finland and Sweden could unfold — and who might resist it. And it could also color his posture toward NATO expansion, especially since much of this lengthy process could play out when he’s a formally declared 2024 candidate. The last two major NATO expansions came in 1999, when Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary joined, and in 2004, when seven former communist countries and Soviet republics joined. The conventional wisdom is that both countries would be welcomed with open arms.