Posted on 03/24/2014 7:53:27 AM PDT by goldstategop
THE HAGUE, March 24./ITAR-TASS/. Ukrainian crisis has not adversely affected bilateral relations between Finland and Russia, Finland’s President Sauli Niinisto said in The Hague on Monday.
Helsinki traditionally maintained friendly relations with Moscow, Niinisto said adding he intended to continue bilateral meetings with Russia if it was in Finland’s interests, though last week's EU summit recommended that EU members cancel such meetings.
Niinisto also pointed out the importance of continued negotiations to avert a deeper crisis in Ukraine.
It was true in the Soviet time and its equally valid today.
He is an idiot
Why? Finland shares a long border with Russia and it lost two wars.
It simply cannot afford to offend Russia - friendly relations with Russia are absolutely indispensable to Finland’s survival as a sovereign country.
Because Russia has shown over and over it has no respect for its neighbors borders.
So why didn’t the Soviet Union ever take over Finland during the Cold War? No one could have stopped them.
Yep. Finland would have nothing to gain by offending Russia. Anyway, I doubt that Putin would change his behavior just because Finland asked him to.
It has been invaded time and again by Russia and should not appease them.
Since when? Finland hasn’t had an armed conflict with Soviet Union/Russia since the Continuation War in the 1940s.
Why would they?
They took large areas of Karelia.
They forced Finland into neutrality in the Cold War.
They didn’t want to spook Sweden into joining NATO, as Norway already had.
I’m sorry, what kind of a conservative is so invested in justifying the imperialist history and current policy of Russia? I’m really baffled .
They're Finnished!
Exactly.
When you have a giant neighbor, geography limits your options.
This has nothing to do with what you or I prefer Finland should do. It has to live with Russia every day. Thank God we don’t have to.
That is still fresh in memory. Russia’s problem has to do with ports so it invades Crimea and Finland to get access to ports.
Norway has a border with Russia too.
Funny, they manage to have an independent political life.
It helps to have friends. The Russian bully tends to back off then.
Russia had its base in Sevastopol. That excuse for the invasion doesn’t wash .
Finland needs trade with Russia, desperately, especially with Europe trade declining.
Russia however, doesn’t need Finland. They are a small trading partner for Russia.
The growth of the middle class in Russia has been a huge boost for Finland, and Finnish products. Even the Helsinki Hockey team was bought by Russian Billionaires, and joined the Russian National League.
Don't even bother. He has such a simplistic view of world affairs as though everything works in a vacuum and that international political relations is always in perfect balance.
i am not trying to make Russia’s argument. I think Russia is a dangerous evil and has no business threatening its neighbors and needs to get the hell out of Ukraine
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