finland became the 31st member country to join NATO on Tuesday. Secretary of State Pekka Haavisto presented US Secretary of State Antony Blinken with his country’s instrument of accession, which made the admission legally binding. The Secretary General of the alliance, Jens Stoltenberg, spoke of a “historic day”. Finland thus gets “a rock-solid guarantee” for its defense, he said in Brussels. “Article 5, all for one, one for all, applies to Finland from today.”
Shortly after the official accession, the Finnish flag was raised in front of the headquarters of the defense alliance for the first time. “31 flags are flying together as a symbol of our unity and solidarity,” Stoltenberg said during the ceremony. Finland’s accession sends a clear message that each nation can choose its own path. The door of NATO remains open, nobody can close it by force.
According to US Secretary of State Blinken, Finland’s accession is thanks to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Blinken said shortly before the admission ceremony that Putin had brought about something that he actually wanted to prevent by aggression against Ukraine. The result is that many countries believe they have to do more for their defense in order to be able to deter Russia.
Sweden’s accession continues to be blocked
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the government in Helsinki decided to give up its non-alignment status and, together with Sweden, applied to join the alliance on May 18, 2022. The latter, in turn, invited both states to join at the end of June, but Turkey and Hungary have not yet ratified Sweden’s admission.
The Turkish government on Tuesday deposited its instrument of ratification of Finland’s accession with the United States government, which is the depositary under the NATO treaty; this completed the ratification. Stoltenberg then invited Finland to join. It was a symbolic day for NATO. On April 4, 74 years ago, the alliance was founded with the North Atlantic Treaty.
With the new member, the land border of the alliance with Russia will be extended by 1,340 kilometers, more than twice as long as before. From the point of view of the allies, accession is nevertheless a security gain, because the country with 5.6 million inhabitants has modern, powerful armed forces with a strength of 30,000 active soldiers. In the event of a conflict, up to 280,000 soldiers could be mobilized quickly, and in an emergency even up to 900,000. In the current year, it is expected to spend a good two percent of its economic power on defense.
“Finland is one of the few countries in Europe that did not reduce their investments in defense and the readiness of their armed forces at the end of the Cold War,” Stoltenberg said on Monday. He also pointed out that Helsinki is acquiring more than 60 F-35s, currently the world’s most modern combat aircraft.
Russia wants to strengthen military potential
NATO will initially station no more troops in Finland. She always emphasizes that her enlargement is not directed against Russia. Nevertheless, this changes the strategic situation on the eastern flank. In this way, the Baltic Sea will largely become an inland sea of the alliance. In the event of a conflict, this would severely limit the mobility of Russia’s Baltic Fleet, which is stationed in Kaliningrad and Saint Petersburg.
The Baltic States, especially Estonia, thus gain strategic depth, which makes their defense easier. The situation is also changing in the far north, particularly on the Kola Peninsula, where Russia’s Arctic Fleet with its nuclear-armed submarines and long-range bombers is stationed. In the event of a conflict, the alliance could cut off the peninsula.
“We will strengthen our military capability in the western and northwestern direction,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said on Monday, according to a report by the state news agency RIA. Should more NATO troops be stationed in Finland, further steps will be taken to ensure Russia’s security.