No Increase in Military Activity Near the Border with Russia Recorded by Finland

Paris, May 11 – Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said in an interview with the French version of West France and the German version of Finke that Russian military activity on the border with Finland has not intensified since its accession to NATO.

“When we decided to apply for NATO membership last spring, we expected all kinds of provocations from Russia. But nothing happened. Russia’s military activity on the border with Finland has not increased significantly,” the minister said.

Finland and Sweden, against the background of the events that took place in Ukraine in May last year, have submitted applications to the NATO Secretary General to join the alliance. To join the alliance, the consent of all its members is required. At first, Turkey suspended the process of considering applications, but already on June 29, Turkey, Sweden and Finland signed a security memorandum, which, according to the Secretary General of the alliance, takes into account all of Ankara’s concerns related to the fight against terrorism. and restrictions on the supply of weapons. Earlier, the Russian embassy in Sweden published an article on its website stating that after Sweden and Finland enter NATO, the total length of the borders of Russia and NATO will almost double, and this will not improve Europe’s security – the new members of the hostile bloc “will become a legitimate target for retaliatory measures from Russia.”

Until the beginning of 2023, the applications of Sweden and Finland have been ratified by 28 of the 30 NATO countries. However, Hungary and Turkey have expressed their desire to consider the Swedish application separately from the Finnish one. On the night of March 31, the approval of the Finnish application with NATO was completed by all members of the Alliance. Sweden’s application has not yet received Hungarian and Turkish approval.