Finland Joins NATO In Major Blow To Russia Over Ukraine War

Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, left, shakes hands with United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken, right, after handing over his nation's accession document during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Tuesday, April 4, 2023. Finland joined the NATO military alliance on Tuesday, dealing a major blow to Russia with a historic realignment of the continent triggered by Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. (Johanna Geron, Pool Photo via AP)

BY LORNE COOK AND MATTHEW LEE

BRUSSELS (AP) — Finland joined the NATO military alliance Tuesday, dealing a major blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin with a historic realignment of Europe’s post-Cold War security landscape triggered by Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Nordic country’s membership doubles Russia’s border with the world’s biggest security alliance. Finland had adopted neutrality after its defeat by the Soviets in World War II, but its leaders signaled they wanted to join NATO just months after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine sent a shiver of fear through its neighbors.

In praising Finland’s membership, U.S. President Joe Biden noted it came on the 74th anniversary of the signing of NATO’s founding treaty on April 4, 1949.

“When Putin launched his brutal war of aggression against the people of Ukraine, he thought he could divide Europe and NATO. He was wrong,” Biden said. “Today, we are more united than ever. And together — strengthened by our newest ally, Finland — we will continue to preserve transatlantic security, defend every inch of NATO territory, and meet any and all challenges we face.”

The move is a strategic and political setback for Putin, who has long complained about NATO’s expansion toward Russia and partly used that as a justification for the invasion.

“I’m tempted to say this is maybe the one thing that we can thank Mr. Putin for because he once again here precipitated something he claims to want to prevent by Russia’s aggression, causing many countries to believe that they have to do more to look out for their own defense and to make sure that they can deter possible Russian aggression going forward,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said before accepting the documents that made Finland’s membership official.

The U.S. State Department is the repository of NATO texts concerning membership.

Russia warned it would be forced to take “retaliatory measures” to address what it called security threats created by Finland’s membership. It had also warned it would bolster forces near Finland if NATO sends any additional troops or equipment to what is its 31st member country.

The alliance says it poses no threat to Moscow.

Alarmed by Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine last year, Finland, which shares a 1,340 kilometer (832 mile) border with Russia, applied to join in May, setting aside years of military nonalignment to seek protection under the organization’s security umbrella.

“It’s a great day for Finland and an important day for NATO, too,” said Finnish President Sauli Niinisto. “Russia tried to create a sphere around them and, well, we are not a sphere. I’m sure that Finns themselves feel more secure, that we are living in a more stable world.”

Neighboring Sweden, which has avoided military alliances for more than 200 years, has also applied. But objections from NATO members Turkey and Hungary have delayed the process.

Niinisto said Finland’s membership “is not complete without that of Sweden. The persistent efforts for a rapid Swedish membership continue.“

Earlier, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said Moscow “will be forced to take military-technical and other retaliatory measures to counter the threats to our national security arising from Finland’s accession to NATO.”

It said Finland’s move marks “a fundamental change in the situation in Northern Europe, which had previously been one of the most stable regions in the world.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Finland’s membership reflects the alliance’s anti-Russian course and warned that Moscow will respond depending on what weapons NATO allies place there. But he also sought to play down the impact, noting that Russia has no territorial disputes with Finland.

It’s not clear what additional military resources Russia could send to the Finnish border. Moscow has deployed the bulk of its most capable military units to Ukraine.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said no more troops would be sent to Finland unless it asked for help.

The country is now protected by what Stoltenberg called NATO’s “iron-clad security guarantee,” under which all member countries vow to come to the defense of any ally that comes under attack.

But Stoltenberg refused to rule out the possibility of holding more military exercises there and said that NATO would not allow Russia’s demands to dictate the organization’s decisions.

“We are constantly assessing our posture, our presence. We have more exercises, we have more presence, also in the Nordic area,” he said.

Finland’s Parliament, meanwhile, said its website was hit with a so-called denial-of-service attack, which made the site hard to use, with many pages not loading and some functions not available.

A pro-Russian hacker group known as NoName057 (16) claimed responsibility, saying the attack was retaliation for Finland joining NATO. The claim could not be immediately verified.

The hacker group, which has reportedly acted on Moscow’s orders, has taken party in a slew of cyberattacks on the U.S. and its allies in the past. Finnish public broadcaster YLE said the same group hit the Parliament’s site last year.

Finland’s entry was marked with a flag-raising ceremony at NATO headquarters and a meeting of the alliance’s foreign ministers.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Turkey’s Parliament Ratifies Finland’s Membership In NATO

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

ANKARA, TURKEY (AP) — Turkey’s parliament on Thursday ratified Finland’s application to join NATO, lifting the last hurdle in the way of the Nordic country’s long-delayed accession into the Western military alliance.

All 276 lawmakers present voted in favor of Finland’s bid, days after Hungary’s parliament also endorsed Helsinki’s accession.

Alarmed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a year ago, Finland and Sweden abandoned their decades-long policy of nonalignment and applied to join the alliance.

Full unanimity is required to admit new members into the 30-member alliance, and Turkey and Hungary were the last two NATO members to ratify Finland’s accession.

Sweden’s bid to join the alliance, meanwhile, has been left hanging, with both Turkey and Hungary holding out on giving it the green light despite expressing support for NATO’s expansion.

Turkey’s government accuses Sweden of being too lenient toward groups it deems to be terrorist organizations and security threats, including militant Kurdish groups and people associated with a 2016 coup attempt.


More recently, Turkey was angered by a series of demonstrations in Sweden, including a protest by an anti-Islam activist who burned the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy.

Hungary’s government contends some Swedish politicians have made derisive statements about the condition of Hungary’s democracy and played an active role in ensuring that billions in European Union funds were frozen over alleged rule-of-law and democracy violations.

Turkish officials have said that unlike Sweden, Finland fulfilled its obligations under a memorandum signed last year under which the two countries pledged to address Turkey’s security concerns.

Finland, Sweden Move Ahead Toward Possible NATO Membership

Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, left, and Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin walk together prior to a meeting on whether to seek NATO membership, in Stockholm, Sweden, Wednesday, April 13, 2022. (Paul Wennerholm/TT via AP)

BY JARI TANNER

HELSINKI (AP) — European Union nations Finland and Sweden reached important stages Wednesday on their way to possible NATO membership as the Finnish government issued a security report to lawmakers and Sweden’s ruling party initiated a review of security policy options.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24 triggered a surge in support for joining NATO in the two traditionally militarily non-aligned Nordic countries, with polls showing a majority of respondents willing to join the alliance in Finland and supporters of NATO in Sweden clearly outnumbering those against the idea.

Finland, a country of 5.5 million, shares the EU’s longest border with Russia, a 1,340-kilometer (833-mile) frontier. Sweden has no border with Russia.

Russia, for its part, has warned Sweden and Finland against joining NATO, with officials saying it would not contribute to stability in Europe. Officials said Russia would respond to such a move with retaliatory measures that would cause “military and political consequences” for Helsinki and Stockholm. One of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s reasons for invading Ukraine was that the country refused to promise that it would not join NATO.

Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin, speaking Wednesday in Stockholm in a joint news conference with her Swedish counterpart Magdalena Andersson, said Finland is ready to make a decision on NATO “within weeks” rather than months following an extensive debate in the 200-seat Eduskunta legislature.

Marin stressed that Finland and Sweden, two neighboring Nordic countries which have close economic, political and military ties, will make independent decisions regarding their security policy arrangements, including whether to join NATO.

“But we do that with a clear understanding that our choices will affect not only ourselves but our neighbors as well,” Marin said, adding that she would prefer seeing both Finland and Sweden becoming NATO members.

Andersson said Sweden and Finland would maintain “a very close dialogue and have a very straightforward and honest discussions” in the coming weeks over their countries respective choices on NATO.

The only real option to NATO membership could be an enhanced bilateral military cooperation added with the United States and Nordic NATO member Norway, Finnish experts have said.

Marin and Andersson lead the ruling Social Democratic Parties in their respective countries. The parties are expected to announce their NATO views in early and late May, respectively. Parliaments in both countries are ready to finally decide the matter — something that could happen in Finland in late May and a bit later in Sweden.

Complicating things in Sweden is the general election in September, which is likely to be dominated by the NATO issue.

In Finland, President Sauli Niinisto said he was convinced that his country’s decision on NATO will be ready well ahead of NATO’s June 29-30 summit in Madrid, Spain.

On Wednesday, the Finnish government issued a much-awaited report on changes in Finland’s security environment that lawmakers will start debating after the Easter break. The report addresses the pros and cons of Finland’s possible membership in NATO, focusing on supply threats, economic effects, cybersecurity and hydrid threats.

“The war started by Russia endangers security and stability in entire Europe,” Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said as he presented the report. “Russia’s attack on Ukraine will have a long-lasting impact on our own security environment. Trust in Russia has plummeted.”

Andersson said Wednesday that the Swedish government is working on a security environment analysis together with all parties in the 349-seat Riksdag legislature. She said the report is due May 31 but could be finished earlier. In addition, Andersson’s Social Democratic Party has initiated its own separate review of Sweden’s security environment.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at:

https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Finland cautions on Chinese market dominance in Nigeria

By Ameto Akpe, Abuja/Business Day

Mikko Kosonen, president, Finland Innovation Fund – SITRA, has cautioned Nigeria on the extensive presence and dominance of the Chinese in the country, saying “dominance of the Chinese needs to be dealt with in a smart way.”

Notably, the EU late last year warned Nigeria on China’s increasing interests in the country, when Belen Uyarra head, political and economic unit of the EU delegation in Nigeria at a media chat in Abuja, noted that the “Nigerian businesses should be the ones worried about the Chinese because they are both looking at the same niche.”

Speaking at the Nigeria-Finnish Business Forum in Abuja, Kosonen noted that it was important Nigerians learnt quickly from this foreign presence and acquire the skill to manage these projects and handle the technologies independently.

The Nigeria-Finnish Business Forum is designed to deepen awareness on the business and investment opportunities between both countries within the context of the existing comparative and competitive advantages, and the development histories of both nations.

Kosonen noted further that Nigeria needed to invest in research and education if it hoped to become competitive and attain its developmental aspirations, adding that “there is no short cut to success.”

Meanwhile, also speaking at the same forum, Arete-Zoe Amana, executive director of the Nigeria-Finnish Business Group, said in order to enhance the competitive index of the nation, Nigeria must leverage on its bilateral and multilateral relations through a more strategic approach to trade and investment promotion.

Amana stated that this was in line with President Goodluck Jonathan’s inaugural speech where he emphasised the need for the formation of technical financial partnerships with global businesses and organisations.

She said: “Recognising the pivotal role in economic development, government needs to pay more than lip service to the objective of enhancing FDIs inflow by strengthening NIPC’s institutional capacity through adequate funding of it operations so that it can achieve its raison d’être and remain the regional beacon of excellence.

The Nigerian Finnish Business Group, which is the business networking platform of the Nigerian-Finnish Business Association, is poised to provide unparalleled membership services to enable members achieve their strategic objective in a professional and purposeful manner employing global best practices in its operations.

“We will continue to collaborate actively and then with the embassy of Finland and forge beneficial alliance with relevant local and international ministries, department and agencies to enable us serve our stakeholder public,” Amana said.