Finland wants to join NATO - Sweden is likely to follow

Created: 05/15/2022, 20:12

Antti Kaikkonen (l), Minister of Defense of Finland, and Pekka Haavisto, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland, speak at the press conference on Finland's security policy decisions in the Presidential Palace.

© Heikki Saukkomaa/Lehtikuva/dpa

For decades, Finland's NATO membership was considered unthinkable.

But Moscow's attack on Ukraine has led to a rethink.

In Sweden, too, the signs point to joining NATO.

Helsinki - The government in Finland wants to apply to join NATO.

This was announced by Finnish President Sauli Niinistö and Prime Minister Sanna Marin on Sunday in Helsinki.

The Finnish parliament still has to approve the step, but a majority is considered safe.

Niinistö and Marin spoke several times on Sunday of a "historic day" for the Scandinavian country.

"A new era is beginning," said the President.

Neighboring Sweden also continued to head for a historic U-turn on the NATO issue on Sunday.

Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson's ruling Social Democrats spoke out in favor of joining.

Finland has been non-aligned for decades and shares a 1,300-kilometer border with Russia.

Joining the military alliance was long considered unthinkable - after all, the Finns didn't want to alienate their big neighbor to the east.

But Moscow's war of aggression against Ukraine has led to a rethink among politicians and the population.

Marin: “Of course we are prepared”

"Everything changed with Russia's attack on Ukraine and I personally think we can no longer count on a peaceful future alongside Russia and on our own," Marin said.

We are dealing with a very different Russia than just a few months ago.

Regarding possible Russian reprisals, she said: "Of course we are prepared for all possible actions from the Russian side."

The decision was preceded by an intensive social debate and comprehensive political consultations.

Both Niinistö and Marin recently campaigned to join the military alliance.

It was only on Saturday that Marin's social democratic governing party, the SDP, spoke out in favor of the move.

This means that a majority in parliament for NATO membership is considered secure.

According to the latest opinion polls, the majority of the population now also supports the move.

Sweden also wants to join NATO

The Russian war of aggression in Ukraine has also sparked a major debate about joining NATO in Sweden, which has also been non-aligned up to now.

Just hours after the press conference in Helsinki, Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson addressed the press in Stockholm and announced that her social democratic party was in favor of a joint application for membership with Finland.

200 years of non-alignment has served her country well, Andersson said, but this is questionable for the future.

"We are confronted with a fundamentally changed security environment in Europe," said the politician.

She added: "The fundamental question for us is how best to protect Sweden and the Kremlin has shown that it is ready to use violence to achieve its political goals (...)".

As a NATO member, Sweden will not only achieve more security, but also contribute to the security of other NATO countries, Andersson continued.

Parliament in both countries is now scheduled to meet on Monday to debate NATO membership.

Putin speaks of deteriorating relations

In a phone call to Niiinistö on Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin described Finland's planned NATO membership as a mistake.

Russia does not pose a threat to the neighboring country, Putin emphasized during the talks, according to the Kremlin.

Finland's departure from traditional neutrality will lead to a deterioration in the previously good neighborly relations.

However, there were no direct threats during the conversation, emphasized Niinistö.

more on the subject

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NATO is struggling for unity in the debate on northern expansion

Finland's leadership for 'immediate' NATO entry

Finland and Sweden are already close partners of NATO, but are not official members.

Theoretically, their admission to the military alliance could still be blocked by the veto of one of the member states, which must decide unanimously on admissions.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was critical, accusing Finland and Sweden of offering safe haven to the banned Kurdish Workers' Party PKK.

Finland's President Niinistö was surprised by Erdogan's statements on Sunday.

He recently called the Turkish head of state and he assured him of Ankara's support for an application for NATO membership.

But he is ready for a further exchange with Erdogan to talk about the problems raised.

dpa