Putin said Finland was ‘wrong’ to leave neutrality to join NATO

Finnish President Sauli Niinisto (right) and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands during a meeting in Savonlinna, Finland in 2017. They had a phone call today May 14 – Photo: AFP

“Putin stressed that ending the traditional policy of military neutrality would be a mistake because there is no threat to the security of Finland,” the Kremlin said after the phone call between the two countries. Russian and Finnish leaders.

President Putin’s statement came after Finnish officials said on May 12 that the country planned to propose to join the NATO military alliance on May 15.

“Such a change in the political orientation of this country (Finland) could have a negative impact on Russia-Finland relations, which have developed over the years in the spirit of good neighborliness and cooperation between them.” partners,” the Kremlin quoted Putin as saying.

Meanwhile, President Sauli Niinisto’s office said the Finnish leader had told Putin that the demands made by Russia by the end of 2021 were aimed at preventing countries from joining NATO and Russia’s military campaign in the region. Ukraine from February 2022 “fundamentally changed the security environment of Finland”.

Also in the above phone conversation, Russian President Putin and Finnish President Sauli Niinisto mentioned the military situation in Ukraine.

According to the Kremlin, Putin informed his Finnish counterpart about the status of the Russia-Ukraine negotiations. The Russian leader said that these talks “have been almost suspended by Kiev, and Kiev has expressed no interest in serious and constructive dialogue”.

The process of NATO expansion to the east

Officially, both Sweden and Finland have so far maintained the principle of non-military alignment. However, many opinion polls show that public support for joining NATO has nearly doubled since Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine on February 24, to about 50% in Switzerland. Sweden and 60% in Finland.

Finland shares a common border with Russia up to 1,340 km long. It wants protection from NATO, in addition to the significant military forces that Finland itself already has. Meanwhile, Sweden is concerned about the presence of Russian warships in the Baltic Sea.

In fact, both Finland and Sweden already have close military relations with their NATO partners. According to the newspaper The Economistsome experts argue that militarily, Finland even has a higher “compatibility” (ability to conduct joint operations with other allies) with NATO than even some of its current members. NATO.