Posted on 04/04/2023 3:53:05 AM PDT by Timber Rattler
The Nordic country will become NATO’s 31st member on Tuesday, expanding the alliance in a strategic setback for President Vladimir Putin of Russia.
(snip)
Finland’s flag is being raised on Tuesday afternoon at NATO headquarters, a deeply symbolic moment marking the Nordic nation’s official welcome into the alliance and the shifting power calculations as the West strengthens its allegiances in response to the war in Ukraine.
The president of Finland, Sauli Niinisto, is expected to attend the ceremony, on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s 74th anniversary, in what amounts to a strategic defeat for President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, who has made blocking NATO expansion a goal of his leadership.
With Finland’s membership unlocked by Turkey’s vote last week to ratify its entry, NATO’s border with Russia is doubling and the alliance has gained access to a strong military with a deep history of countering its bigger neighbor.
The ceremony comes as foreign ministers from the alliance gather in Brussels for a two-day meeting. Finland’s foreign minister, Pekka Haavisto, will attend the meeting — Finland’s first as a full-fledged member — although many details about how his country, which shares an 830-mile border with Russia, will integrate into the alliance are yet to be determined.
A new Finnish government, still to be negotiated following an election on Sunday, will have to decide whether Finland will accept foreign troops on its soil, for example, or even nuclear weapons belonging to allies.
Mr. Niinisto judged quickly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine that Finland’s best protection was to drop its military nonalignment and apply to join NATO. His judgment was influential for a more hesitant Sweden, which has also applied to join.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
70 years of peace and neutrality...thrown out the window on the whims of a drug using female Prime Minister
I can understand Finland in the alliance, but what the hell are Albania and Macedonia doing in there?
Those two countries produce NOTHING, contribute NOTHING! Just extreme welfare leaches. Kick them out NOW!
Good for Finland
Now is time for America to get out of NATO.
Finlandization was not really peace and neutrality. It was subservience and fear.
Precisely. And the UN!
read the article again ... it wasn’t her, but President Sauli Niinisto who was the driving force for joining NATO
and none of it would’ve happened it Russia hadn’t attacked and invaded one of its neighboring countries ... AGAIN
(see tagline)
“Finland Deals a Blow to Putin” … I’m trying to figure out what changes for Russia when Finland is a NATO member vs. a “neutral” country.
“Russia has started deploying nuclear missiles toward its border with Finland in wake of the nation’s bold NATO bid.
Menacing mobile Iskander missiles were spotted being transported towards the dividing line as a desperate Vladimir Putin throws a troubling tantrum, The Sun reports.”
From last May. The Finnish people are so much safer now. What was a basically an unarmed border is now full bore Cold War II. I didn’t know the Finns had the hundreds of billions laying around to fortify their 800 mile border. They don’t, but our grandchildren will step up and cover the cost of you warmongers’ ever more expensive game of Russian roulette.
I think Finland gets played again. Notice that Finalnd is in and Sweden is not in. As of now, my theory is that Sweden was never going to join and to get the support of the Finnish people they need to give the allusion that Sweden and Finland would join together. Then enter Erogan, who outrageously denies entry to Sweden and Finland (What serious people invite someone into an org without having all the ducks lined up beforehand?). Now Erogan says “Finland can join but not Sweden? Seriously, what kind of joke is this? It seems to me that Erogan was just playing a part and the plan all along was to just pull Finland in. It worked and the naive Finns get tricked.
> I’m trying to figure out what changes for Russia when Finland is a NATO member vs. a “neutral” country. <
I don’t have a dog in this fight. But go back to say 1960, and think of it as Cuba as a member of the Warsaw Pact vs. Cuba not a member of the Warsaw Pact.
always satisfying to see you Russian shills upset
thanks for making my day! LOL
Finland’s parliament also voted 184-7 to join. It was a popular move.
Like you say, it wouldn’t have happened had Putin not invaded Ukraine.
NATO knows all about blowing.
Totally different atmosphere than 1980s/1990s. One can say the same over Putin, his intentions, and Oligarch landscape that is the entire economy. The ‘Potemkin village’ image that economists and the CIA projected....is marginalized.
Finland can take our place in NATO to leave the European grifters with triple the population of Russia and more than 10 times their GDP to defend themselves against regional threat Russia. We have this little thing going on in Asis with a country that is truly a threat to US vital national security interests to take care of.
If WW3 does happen this year, this is what will start it. Look up a bit of history between Russia and Finland. I am a stamp collector and some of the most sought-after stamps are old Finnish stamps with Russian writing.
funny thing is, leading up to 2022, there was even talk of disbanding NATO
up to that point, Russia had worn the mask of a well-behaved nation so well that many leading Europeans were seriously considering getting rid of NATO ... it wasn’t needed anymore, because Russia was a civilized part of Europe, right?
if Vlady had only waited a few years, Europe would’ve let down their defenses and be vulnerable ...
but Putin couldn’t wait, so in February 2022, the mask dropped ... and Europe suddenly woke up enough to see that, despite all its sunny optimism, the menacing monster in the East was still there after all
Which propaganda spewing federal agency pays for your subscription to the New York Times Liars, Contractor? You do a great job infiltrating FR and advocating for Brandon and Ze boys.
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