Finland wants NATO membership “without delay” and will announce its decision on Sunday

The President and Prime Minister of Finland They said they were favorable this Thursday to an adhesion “without delay” to the NATOan important step towards a bid from the Nordic country that will normally be announced on Sunday.

“Being a member of NATO would strengthen the security Finland. As a member of the NATO, Finland it would also strengthen the Alliance as a whole. Finland must be a candidate for membership without delay”considered in a common statement the president Sauli Niinisto and the prime minister sanna marin.

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On Sunday the two officials have planned to give a press conference on “decisions that concern the security policy of Finland”.

The position taken by the two leaders marks the trend that the country will follow, which shares a 1,300-kilometer border with Russia and has a painful past with his powerful neighbor.

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Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which began on February 24, made Finnish public opinion in favor of joining the Alliance.

This file photo taken on February 24, 2022 shows Finland’s President Sauli Niinistö and Prime Minister Sanna Marin at a press conference on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (MARKKU ULANDER / LEHTIKUVA / AFP).

The same thing happens in Swedenwhich has also stayed out of military alliances for decades and will announce its accession in the coming days, probably after a meeting of Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson’s Social Democratic party scheduled for Sunday.

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Right now, 76% of the 5.5 million Finns are in favor of joining NATO, according to a poll published on Monday. Before the war in Ukraine this percentage was around 25%.

In Parliament, the majority of the 200 deputies is also in favor. The formal decision on accession must be taken by a Council on security and foreign policy that brings together the head of state, the prime minister and several ministers.

“Look in the mirror”

“Joining NATO is not a decision that goes against anyone”the Finnish president said on Wednesday night, responding to Russian warnings on the matter.

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For the official, who for years has opted for East-West dialogue, Russia can only blame itself for seeing its neighbor join the Alliance.

“If we join NATO my response to Russia would be: ‘you caused this, look in the mirror'”said the president.

On Tuesday, the Finnish Parliament’s Defense Committee concluded that NATO was “the best option” for Finland’s security following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Subject to forced neutrality by Moscow during the Cold War, Finland joined the European Union (EU) and the NATO Peace Partnership after the end of the Soviet Union, but is not a member of the Alliance.

Finland was a Russian province (1809-1917) and was also invaded by the Soviet Union in 1939.

“We hope that Swedenour close partner, will come to the same conclusion as us and we can be candidates together”, Finnish Defense Minister Antti Kaikkonen said on his blog.

Both Finland and Sweden are concerned about the Russian reaction to their request for membership and the two countries have tried to obtain guarantees and protection for the months prior to their formal entry into the Alliance. One proof is the agreements signed on Wednesday between Finland and the UK for mutual assistance.

The parliaments of the 30 member countries of the Alliance must ratify the accession of the new countries and the process can take several months.

Meanwhile the two countries, both members of the EU, can also feel supported by article 42.7 that provides for mutual assistance in European treaties, stressed Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto.

So far, the Russian reaction has been vague.

“We are closely monitoring all actions that may in one way or another modify the configuration of the Alliance near our borders,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov told reporters on Wednesday.

Source: Elcomercio