Russia threatens 'countermeasures' as Finland officially joins NATO

Finland has formally joined the NATO military alliance in a historic policy shift brought on by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, drawing a threat from Moscow of "countermeasures".

Finland's accession roughly doubles the length of the border that NATO shares with Russia, adding 1,340 kilometres, and bolsters its eastern flank as the war in Ukraine grinds on with no resolution in sight.

Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto completed the accession process by handing over an official document to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

"We welcome Finland to the alliance," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at the end of the brief ceremony.

Earlier, Mr Stoltenberg had noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin had cited opposing NATO's eastward expansion as one justification for his invasion.

"He is getting exactly the opposite…Finland today, and soon also Sweden will become a full fledged member of the alliance," Mr Stoltenberg said in Brussels.

Finnish President Saul Niinisto said Finland's most significant contribution to NATO's common deterrence and defence would be to defend its own territory.

"There is still significant work to be done to coordinate this with NATO," he said.

"It is a great day for Finland and I want to say that it is an important day for NATO," Mr Niinisto said at a joint news conference with Mr Stoltenberg.

The Kremlin said Russia would be forced to take "countermeasures" as a result of Finland's accession.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the move raised the prospect of the conflict in Ukraine escalating further.

Russia said on Monday it would strengthen its military capacity in its western and north-western regions in response to Finland joining NATO.

'The right choice'

The Ukrainian government also hailed Finland's move.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief of staff Andriy Yermak wrote on Telegram: "FI made the right choice. NATO is also a key goal for Ukraine."

The event marks the end of an era of military non-alignment for Finland that began after the country repelled an invasion attempt by the Soviet Union during World War Two and opted to try to maintain friendly relations with neighbouring Russia.

But the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 prompted Finns to seek security under NATO's collective defence pact, which states that an attack on one member is an attack on all.

Moscow, which has long criticised the move, reacted angrily.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the NATO expansion was an "encroachment on our security and on Russia's national interests".

Moscow would watch closely for any NATO military deployments in Finland, he said.

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Russia only had itself to blame for Finland's move.

"I'm tempted to say this is maybe the one thing we can thank Mr Putin for, because he once again here precipitated something he claims to want to prevent," Mr Blinken said.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak welcomed Finland to the alliance and said it was a step "that makes every one of us safer".

Sweden and Finland applied together last year to join NATO, but the Swedish application has been held up by NATO members Türkiye and Hungary.

Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstroem told reporters it was Stockholm's ambition to become a member at the NATO summit in Vilnius in July.

"This is a question of utmost importance for Sweden…There is no reason for neither the Turkish parliament or the Hungarian parliament to make any further further delays," he said.

Türkiye says Stockholm harbours members of what Ankara considers terrorist groups — an accusation Sweden denies — and has demanded their extradition as a step toward ratifying Swedish membership.

Hungary cites grievances over criticism of Prime Minister Viktor Orban's democratic record.

NATO diplomats say they expect Budapest to approve Sweden's bid if it sees Türkiye moving to do so.

US President Joe Biden welcomed Finland's accession to NATO and urged Turkey and Hungary to conclude their ratification processes for Sweden to join "without delay".

"I look forward to welcoming Sweden as a NATO member as soon as possible," Mr Biden said in a statement.

'A special day for Finland'

Finns living close to the country's long border with Russia as well as in the capital of Helsinki welcomed Finland's new NATO membership and the sense of having a larger alliance behind them after decades of military non-alignment.

"I feel it's a good thing that Finland is joining NATO. We have been here next to Russia for ages," said Outi Lehtimaki, 59, a designer in Helsinki.

"My father was in the war with the Russians so this is like a personal thing to me."

Senja Veihlanen, a 25-year-old baker said: "In some ways I think it will make Finland a safer place but then again we don't know what Russia will do. It's a big question for me."

In Virolahti, near the Russian border due east of Helsinki, retired Finnish combat engineer Ilkka Lansivaara had hung his own NATO flag from the side of his house.

"It's a special day for Finland," said Lansivaara, 70, a former soldier whose father was an air force pilot during World War Two.

"Now we have power also behind us, not just our own forces," he added.

Matti Seppala, 78, a retired warehouse worker who grew up near the border said joining would bolster Finland's security, even if he was not scared of Russian "sabre rattling".

"I supported joining, you never know with the big brother, what they will do," he said.

Meanwhile citizens of St Petersburg, the Russian city closest to Finland, accused their neighbour of turning its back on them by joining the Western military alliance, following their government's line that the accession was a hostile act.

Before Russia sent its armed forces into Ukraine early last year, people in Russia's second city had been fond of visiting the Finnish capital Helsinki, about five hours' drive away.

"I don't think anything will change for us," said St. Petersburg resident Yevgeny, who like others declined to give his surname.

"It'll only get worse for the Finns because we won't go there, and they'll only incur losses from this."

Another resident, Nikolai, said Finland was "making problems for itself".

"We used to consider it a brotherly country of the capitalist world, the closest to us in spirit, in relations, in mutually-beneficial economic relations," he said.

"But now we'll consider it as a state that is unfriendly to us."

Story By: Reuters

Story Original Link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-04-04/finland-officially-joins-nato-russia-threatens-response/102187656