On May 15, local time, according to a number of Western media reports, at a press conference held in Helsinki, the capital of Finland, Finnish President Sholi Niinistö announced that Finland would formally apply to join NATO.
Niinistö believes that this is a historic day for Finland. "A new era is opening," he said. If protected by NATO, Finland would become a mainstay in the Nordic region. Finland's accession to NATO is a good thing for both sides. ”
Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin expressed hope that the Finnish parliament would finalize the matter in the coming days. He said that Finland's accession will not only help enhance NATO's military strength, but also enhance the voice of EU countries within NATO.
Finland's European affairs minister, Toprinen, said NATO was not trying to escalate confrontation with Russia, but finland was ready to face all hostility. Finland is not afraid of retaliation from Putin
"Finland has a strong force. And, we've just decided to bring in 60 F-35s from the United States. The Finnish army is well-equipped, and we are set to become a new force in NATO in the future. ”
Just hours after Finland confirmed this major diplomatic shift, another traditionally non-aligned Nordic country, Sweden, announced the same intention. Sweden's ruling Social Democratic Party discussed Sweden's accession to NATO at its third internal meeting in Stockholm. Subsequently, Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Anderson said at a press conference: "The best way for the security of Sweden and the Swedish people is to join NATO." We believe that Sweden needs to become a full member of NATO and needs the security guarantees that come with that identity. ”
Anderson also said past non-aligned policies were once beneficial to Sweden, but that the practice was no longer sustainable. She believes that if it becomes the last country in the Baltic Sea not to join NATO, then Sweden's security situation will be very fragile. Therefore, she hopes that Sweden will work with Finland to jointly apply for NATO membership.
Most NATO countries, led by the United States, welcomed the application of the two Nordic countries to join NATO. However, as a weighty member of the alliance, Turkey seems less than happy about this. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan believes that Finland and Sweden's hosting and support of the Kurds is an affront to Turkey. His view, therefore, was that unless Finland and Sweden could resolve the issue, there would be no need to talk about their accession to NATO.
However, compared with Turkey's attitude, the real concern is Russia's reaction. Once Finland and Sweden join NATO, it will mean that NATO's eastward expansion momentum will escalate to an unbearable level for Russia. NATO's sharp edge can reach Russia's doorstep, not to mention that Finland's purchase of F-35s this time, even has the ability to carry nuclear weapons, directly threatening Moscow's security.
In history, Finland has had many conflicts with neighboring countries, and the painful lessons of history have made Finns learn to be low-key in the cracks. At the height of the Cold War, finland adopted a policy of relative neutrality in the face of overwhelming polar bear forces in order not to anger the Soviet Union. This policy was not adjusted until the end of the cold war.
As for Finland's quest to join NATO, Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that it would be a mistake for Finland to abandon its traditional policy of neutrality. The change in Finland's diplomatic strategy means that Russia-Finland relations will be in a less positive direction, and Russia may have to increase its military deployment, even nuclear weapons, in the corresponding areas to cope with the new situation.
Under the repeated renderings of the Western media, Europeans often like to put the black pot on Russia's head, believing that Finland and Sweden are seeking to join NATO because Russia has done too much in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. However, these people often overlook the fact that NATO has ignored Russia's security needs for many years and vigorously promoted eastward expansion, and Russia has been forced to retreat to the point where there is no way to retreat, and the final outbreak of armed conflict is naturally inevitable.
However, the West, led by the United States, did not reflect on why Ukraine was in the crossfire, but used the tragedy of Ukraine as another reason to promote NATO's eastward expansion. This kind of zero-sum game thinking of pursuing comprehensive suppression of opponents and taking advantage of the situation to the end precisely reflects the greed and excesses of the West. In this situation, Europe's future prospects for peace will only be bleaker.