Finland NATO

Finland changed its policy toward the military alliance after troops invaded Ukraine. Sweden has avoided all military alliances, but like Finland, ...

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The Finnish Parliament is expected to endorse the decision in the coming days. A formal membership application will then be submitted to NATO headquarters ...

Officials there expressed strong support for Ukraine and warned that Russia’s blockade of grain exports from Ukrainian ports risks stoking a global food crisis. But he voiced confidence that all NATO members would support the bids. Stoltenberg said he was confident the accession process for Finland and Sweden could be expedited in the existing member states. Turkey has also been infuriated by U.S. support for PKK-linked Syrian Kurdish militants to fight the Islamic State group. A formal membership application will then be submitted to NATO headquarters in Brussels, most likely at some point next week. Russia is not achieving its strategic objectives.” “We see now a world where the enemy of democracy number one is Putin and the thinking that he represents,” Kofod said, adding that NATO would also stand with other countries, such as Georgia, which he said were being “instrumentalized” by Russia. “I heard almost across the board, very strong support for Finland and Sweden joining the alliance, if that’s what they choose to do, and I’m very confident that we will reach consensus,” he said after the meeting in Berlin. “Finnish membership in NATO will be good for Finland, good for the Nordic region, and good for NATO. Finland has Norway’s full support,” Huitfeldt said in comments emailed to The Associated Press. “It’s not because we are against the expansion of NATO but because we believe countries who support terror and follow such policies against us should not be NATO allies,” Çavuşoğlu said. Huitfeldt said the Norwegian government would facilitate “a swift consent to ratification by the Norwegian Parliament” for Finland’s accession into NATO. The announcement came as top diplomats from the 30 NATO member states met in Berlin to discuss providing further support to Ukraine and moves by Finland, Sweden and others to join NATO in the face of threats from Russia.

"A new era is beginning," Finnish President Sauli Niinistö said alongside Prime Minister Sanna Marin on Sunday, announcing a step that the two leaders called ...

"We are faced with a fundamentally changed security environment in Europe," Ms Andersson said. "I personally think that we cannot trust any more that there will be a peaceful future." Everything changed when Russia attacked Ukraine," Marin said.

It's a historic move for the Nordic countries, which are known for their policies of military neutrality.

Finland and Sweden have both been reviewing their security policies following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which showed the Kremlin is willing to attack a neighboring nation. Last week, Russia's foreign ministry said Finland joining NATO would be a "radical change" in the country's foreign policy. Finland shares an 830-mile border with Russia; if it joins the military alliance, the land border that Russia shares with NATO territories would roughly double. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has deteriorated the security situation for Sweden and Europe as a whole," Ann Linde, Sweden's foreign affairs minister, said on Twitter. Marin said Finland has been in close contact with NATO and its members over the decision. - Finland shares an 830-mile border with Russia; if it joins the military alliance, the land border that Russia shares with NATO territories would roughly double.

Finland, which shares a border with Russia, changed its policy toward the military alliance after troops invaded Ukraine.

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Finland changed its policy toward the military alliance after troops invaded Ukraine. Sweden has avoided all military alliances, but like Finland, ...

But the invasion changed Kaipia's mind. "I always thought myself being a pacifist, and NATO for me was part of the militarization of the world," said Jouni Kaipia, an architect and a photographer, after attending a rally in Helsinki to support Ukraine. HELSINKI, Finland – The leaders of Finland and Sweden have announced that they back their countries applying to join NATO in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

NATO expects the Nordic countries' membership bid will not be hindered by Ankara, whose concerns will be addressed.

Today the Swedish Social Democratic Party took a historic decision to say yes to apply for a membership in the NATO defence alliance. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has deteriorated the security situation for Sweden and Europe as a whole.https://t.co/UkEcFhfwXZ “Today the Swedish Social Democratic Party took a historic decision to say yes to apply for a membership in the NATO defence alliance,” Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde tweeted. “The Russian invasion of Ukraine has deteriorated the security situation for Sweden and Europe as a whole.” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said he was confident “that we will be able to address the concerns that Turkey has expressed in a way that doesn’t delay the membership”. Turkey laid out demands on Sunday on the sidelines of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Berlin, saying it wanted the two Nordic countries to end support for Kurdish militant groups present on their territory, and to lift the ban on sales of some arms to Turkey.

President Vladimir Putin has already warned his Finnish counterpart on Saturday that relations would be "negatively affected." NATO Secretary-General Jens ...

The decision by the Social Democrats breaks with the party's long-standing position that Sweden must remain nonaligned and means there's a clear majority for NATO membership in Parliament. The plan to join the alliance will be discussed in Sweden's parliament on Monday, and Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson's Cabinet will make an announcement later that day. President Sauli Niinisto and Prime Minister Sanna Marin made the announcement at a joint news conference at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki. The president and government of Finland announced on Sunday that the previously neutral Nordic country that shares a long border with Russia intends apply for membership in NATO, paving the way for the 30-member Western military alliance to expand. In Finland, President Sauli Niinisto and Prime Minister Sanna Marin confirmed earlier statements that their country would seek membership in NATO during a joint news conference at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki. The Nordic country, which was nonaligned before changing its stance on NATO, shares a long border with Russia. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Sunday the process for Finland and Sweden to join could be very quick.

Sweden's Prime Minister says Russia only has itself to blame to more countries wanting to join the military alliance, saying: "The Kremlin has shown that ...

The plan to join the alliance will be discussed in Sweden's parliament on Monday, and Ms Andersson's cabinet will make an announcement later in the day. Mr Stoltenberg also said the alliance would increase its presence in the Baltic region to deter Russian threats. - The plan to join the alliance will be discussed in Sweden's parliament on Monday

Finnish leaders say shift in wake of Russian action is not just in politics but also in people's minds.

Moscow tells Nordic pair there will be 'far-reaching consequences' as both parliaments begin debating issue.

Nato and the US have both said they were confident Turkey would not hold up Sweden’s accession. While 85% of Finland’s 200 MPs back membership, 150 have requested to speak and a vote was not expected on Monday. “I’m confident we will be able to address the concerns Turkey has expressed in a way that doesn’t delay the membership,” Stoltenberg said on Sunday. “Our goal is to be amongst the first countries to be able to ratify the accession of Sweden and Finland, because we know that the interim period between the accession demand and the ratification must be shortened,” she said. She added: “Unfortunately, we have no reason to believe the current trend [of Russia’s actions] will be reversed in the foreseeable future.” A formal Swedish government decision to join the alliance is expected later on Monday. Ryabkov added that the two Nordic nations “should have no illusions that we will simply put up with it”, warning that the move was “another grave mistake with far-reaching consequences” and the “general level of military tension will increase”.