The President of Finland calls Putin to inform him of his intention to join NATO

The president of Finland, Sauli Niinisto, has informed his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, of his country’s intention to apply to join NATO “in the next few days” in a “direct, unequivocal and unexaggerated” telephone conversation, according to the statement from the Finnish Presidency. Niinisto explained to Putin that Russia’s “massive invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has altered Finland’s security environment” and reminded him that “every independent nation” has the right to “maximize its security.”

“By joining NATO, Finland strengthens its own security and assumes its responsibility. He doesn’t walk away from anyone“, adds the presidential note. However, the Finnish president informed Putin that his intention in the future is to “deal with the practical issues arising from being a neighbor of Russia in a correct and professional manner.” “President Niinistö reiterated his deep concern for the human suffering caused by the war that Russia is waging in Ukraine and underlined the urgent need for peace,” according to the note, which concludes by stating that the telephone conversation was initiated by Finland.

Next, the Finnish Prime Minister, Sanna Marin, announced that the leadership of her party, the Social Democratic Workers’ Party of Finland (SDP), has ratified its support for the country’s entry into the Alliance. “As a consequence of the significant changes in the security situation in Finland and in Europe, the SDP supports Finland’s entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization,” Marin said at a press conference, according to the Finnish newspaper ‘ Helsingin Sanomat’. “The SDP supports the proposal to open accession negotiations,” added Marin, who stressed that the direction of training has approved the proposal unanimously.

For his part, the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has warned his counterpart that Finland’s entry into NATO could lead to “a negative impact” on bilateral relations before assuring that your country poses no threat to your neighbor. Putin has responded in these terms in the telephone conversation with Niinisto. Putin, as quoted by the Russian agency TASS, has stated that “Finland’s rejection of the neutrality policy” with its entry into NATO “could have a negative impact on Russian-Finnish relations.”

For Putin, accession is a “mistake” as “there are no threats to Finland’s security” and “such a change in the country’s foreign policy could negatively affect Russian-Finnish relations, which have been built in a spirit of goodwill”, according to the conversation which, according to the Kremlin, was characterized by the “exchange of frank points of view. Both leaders have also commented on the evolution of the war in Ukraine. In this sense, Putin has placed special emphasis on the fact that the peace negotiations are suspended due to the Ukrainian government, “which has no interest in developing a serious and constructive dialogue”.