Finland and Sweden OFFICIALLY announce their intention to join NATO

[Synchronice]

“The president and the government’s foreign policy committee have agreed that after consulting parliament, Finland will apply for Nato membership,” president, Sauli Niinistö, told a press conference.
“Our decision is historic. The most important thing is the safety of Finland and our citizens. The decision strengthens security and cooperation between the Nordic countries,” Prime Minister Sanna Marin said. She also said that she expects the Finnish parliament to accept this decision.

Reminder:
The process of joining the US-led military bloc NATO requires the approval of the existing 30 member states. At the moment Erdogan says Turkey not supportive of Finland, Sweden joining NATO [Source: ^Reuters]

General source:
The Guardian
You can read this news on every major news website.

Thread Edit
Today not only Finland but some hours later Sweden also approved NATO membership bid!

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[suzanne5223]

The Russian government invaded Ukraine to prevent other Northern Europe countries from joining the NATO but it shows that some neighboring countries to Russia appear not to care about what the Russian may do after their decision in joining NATO.
All this happens because the Russian government is doing things with military force instead of them persuading and maturely talking with their neighboring countries about their decision in joining NATO.
In the meantime, let's wait and see if the Finland decision will push through.

[merchantofzeny]

Well Finland and possibly Sweden better get in fast while Russia is distracted with the whole Ukraine issue. At least Ukraine didn't suffer for nothing.

Reminder:
The process of joining the US-led military bloc NATO requires the approval of the existing 30 member states. At the moment Erdogan says Turkey not supportive of Finland, Sweden joining NATO [Source: ^Reuters]

LOL is Turkey still bitter about not being allowed into the EU? Or there's some deal with Russia? Interesting to find out it's by consensus rather than by majority vote. Kinda like ASEAN and how China basically can veto anything that it disapprove via its proxies in the bloc.

[af_newbie]

Well Finland and possibly Sweden better get in fast while Russia is distracted with the whole Ukraine issue. At least Ukraine didn't suffer for nothing.

Reminder:
The process of joining the US-led military bloc NATO requires the approval of the existing 30 member states. At the moment Erdogan says Turkey not supportive of Finland, Sweden joining NATO [Source: ^Reuters]

LOL is Turkey still bitter about not being allowed into the EU? Or there's some deal with Russia? Interesting to find out it's by consensus rather than by majority vote. Kinda like ASEAN and how China basically can veto anything that it disapprove via its proxies in the bloc.

Turkey can leave NATO anytime.

[TheNineClub]

“The president and the government’s foreign policy committee have agreed that after consulting parliament, Finland will apply for Nato membership,” president, Sauli Niinistö, told a press conference.
“Our decision is historic. The most important thing is the safety of Finland and our citizens. The decision strengthens security and cooperation between the Nordic countries,” Prime Minister Sanna Marin said. She also said that she expects the Finnish parliament to accept this decision.

Reminder:
The process of joining the US-led military bloc NATO requires the approval of the existing 30 member states. At the moment Erdogan says Turkey not supportive of Finland, Sweden joining NATO [Source: ^Reuters]

General source:
The Guardian
You can read this news on every major news website.

Erdogan's requests are are laughable. He says 'This is not populism', and it really is basically throwing this out just to be as neutral as much between Russia and NATO. Banning terorist organisations? A Turkish authoritarian pointing fingers? Also, havent PKK been off Europe's terorist organisation list since 2014?

[teosanru]

“The president and the government’s foreign policy committee have agreed that after consulting parliament, Finland will apply for Nato membership,” president, Sauli Niinistö, told a press conference.
“Our decision is historic. The most important thing is the safety of Finland and our citizens. The decision strengthens security and cooperation between the Nordic countries,” Prime Minister Sanna Marin said. She also said that she expects the Finnish parliament to accept this decision.

Reminder:
The process of joining the US-led military bloc NATO requires the approval of the existing 30 member states. At the moment Erdogan says Turkey not supportive of Finland, Sweden joining NATO [Source: ^Reuters]

General source:
The Guardian
You can read this news on every major news website.

Politically this might effect Russia a lot as more and more European countries are moving towards NATO which means more enemies for Russia on any given day, but geographically both these countries aren't that big a threat, They are located in Nordic Region and Finland just share a small border with Russia. But yes Russia might try to surpress this movement in Finland too by planting some official indirectly to change the government.

[Marvelman]

So can we now expect Putin’s "special military operation" in Finland as well? Russia has already threatened Finland with retaliatory measures. If it should prove to be correct, Moscow may take offensive military action on the eastern border of the another sovereign country.

[suchmoon]

So can we now expect Putin’s "special military operation" in Finland as well? Russia has already threatened Finland with retaliatory measures. If it should prove to be correct, Moscow may take offensive military action on the eastern border of the another sovereign country.

And a dog may try to chase two cars at once but I don't think that's going to work.

[yazher]

The Russian government invaded Ukraine to prevent other Northern Europe countries from joining the NATO but it shows that some neighboring countries to Russia appear not to care about what the Russian may do after their decision in joining NATO.
All this happens because the Russian government is doing things with military force instead of them persuading and maturely talking with their neighboring countries about their decision in joining NATO.
In the meantime, let's wait and see if the Finland decision will push through.

I think they were just waiting for Ukraine to get invaded and when they saw the result was not what they expected, they quickly jump to conclusion that they really need to join NATO for their protection and support in case of a Russian sudden invasion. It seems like when they will be invaded as well in the future, they expected war supplies from their alliances and some sanctions against the invader. But things like this are not good for their country because what if they miscalculated? what if their country won't be invaded rather it would be destroyed with one single nuke? they need to consider reviewing back their decisions if they wanted to protect their citizens.

[coolcoinz]

So can we now expect Putin’s "special military operation" in Finland as well? Russia has already threatened Finland with retaliatory measures. If it should prove to be correct, Moscow may take offensive military action on the eastern border of the another sovereign country.

I bet the Chinese would love to see Russia try to take on Finland and make itself even more vulnerable. What would Russians throw at them? Those traumatized soldiers who are thinking of giving up or harming themselves to be taken home?
At this point Russia wouldn't be able to win against Finland alone, and if Finland gets attacked Sweden will send troops to help. If they join NATO, attacking them would be throwing all of your army away because Russia was no match for NATO even before the war in Ukraine.

All Russia can do at this point is stall and hope to negotiate a ceasefire. If it attacks another country it's going to weaken its presence in Ukraine and Ukrainians will liberate everything and put Russian towns along the border under artillery fire.

[Rruchi man]

And a dog may try to chase two cars at once but I don't think that's going to work.

The Russian military having met with an unexpected fightback from the Ukrainian forces who have refused to back down without a fight, already have their military stretched. The decision of Finland and Sweden to join NATO may have been politically motivated as a measure to frustrate the Russian government, or a decision that has to been taken now while Russia is occupied with Ukraine and will not want to risk fighting too many wars.

[Zlantann]

Russia felt that the invasion of Ukraine would scare other countries from nursing the idea of joining NATO. They just shot themselves on the foot because more nations are joining the alliance because of fear that they might suffer the same fate with Ukraine. NATO has stated that it would take Finland and Sweden up-to one year to to join the alliance. For me I would have wanted NATO to speedup the process this is to ensure that these nations join NATO before Russia withdraws from Ukraine because Putin is unpredictable. He might invade Finland and Sweden just to make a political point or to portray Russia's fearlessness.

It is also important to state that Turkey is a major military player in the world polity. Turkey produces cheap but potent and sophisticated military hardware such as drones. Hence, they shouldn't be overlooked by Finland, Sweden and NATO. Turkey's  differences with these two nations should be settled peacefully. And we shouldn't forget that all members of NATO must give approval before any new nation is allowed to join the alliance.

[be.open]

Putin said today that he has no problems with Finland and Sweden. But if their entry into NATO entails existential threats to Russia in the form of NATO military bases or US nuclear arsenals appearing on their territory, then Russia will make its military-technical response, whatever that means.

[af_newbie]

Putin said today that he has no problems with Finland and Sweden. But if their entry into NATO entails existential threats to Russia in the form of NATO military bases or US nuclear arsenals appearing on their territory, then Russia will make its military-technical response, whatever that means.

Now, it should be clear to anyone with half a brain that the 'problem with Ukraine' was not about its NATO membership or 'prosecution of the Russian language', but simply full access to the Black Sea, farmland, and Donbas resources.

Finland's and Sweden's NATO memberships are not a 'problem' for Russia now even though Russia's border with NATO increased substantially.

Of course, there will be nuclear weapons and NATO bases in Finland. Why do you think they are joining? To get membership cards?

BTW, Russians are eradicating the Ukrainian language and culture in the occupied territories. School curricula have been changed to completely Russify the population, and completely ignore the needs of the native population of the occupied territories.

Russkiy fucking mir. Russians are the true Nazis.

I hope Ukrainians will keep killing Russians until the last one leaves their lands.

[be.open]

Putin said today that he has no problems with Finland and Sweden. But if their entry into NATO entails existential threats to Russia in the form of NATO military bases or US nuclear arsenals appearing on their territory, then Russia will make its military-technical response, whatever that means.

Now, it should be clear to anyone with half a brain that the 'problem with Ukraine' was not about its NATO membership or 'prosecution of the Russian language', but simply full access to the Black Sea, farmland, and Donbas resources.

Finland's and Sweden's NATO memberships are not a 'problem' for Russia now even though Russia's border with NATO increased substantially.

The 'problem with Ukraine' is the dementia and courage of Ukrainian nationalists. Scandinavians are more balanced people.

Of course, there will be nuclear weapons and NATO bases in Finland. Why do you think they are joining? To get membership cards?

Sweden has already stated that its accession to NATO will not entail the appearance of NATO military bases and nuclear weapons on its territory. I think Finland will prudently follow its example, because Putin, in a conversation with the President of Finland, clearly said that this was a mistake. It's time to start listening to what Putin says, because he has already shown that he is not bluffing or joking.

BTW, Russians are eradicating the Ukrainian language and culture in the occupied territories. School curricula have been changed to completely Russify the population, and completely ignore the needs of the native population of the occupied territories.

Russkiy fucking mir. Russians are the true Nazis.

I hope Ukrainians will keep killing Russians until the last one leaves their lands.

The hopes of young men are nourished.

[suzanne5223]

The Russian government invaded Ukraine to prevent other Northern Europe countries from joining the NATO but it shows that some neighboring countries to Russia appear not to care about what the Russian may do after their decision in joining NATO.
All this happens because the Russian government is doing things with military force instead of them persuading and maturely talking with their neighboring countries about their decision in joining NATO.
In the meantime, let's wait and see if the Finland decision will push through.

I think they were just waiting for Ukraine to get invaded and when they saw the result was not what they expected, they quickly jump to conclusion that they really need to join NATO for their protection and support in case of a Russian sudden invasion. It seems like when they will be invaded as well in the future, they expected war supplies from their alliances and some sanctions against the invader. But things like this are not good for their country because what if they miscalculated? what if their country won't be invaded rather it would be destroyed with one single nuke? they need to consider reviewing back their decisions if they wanted to protect their citizens.

You make a point, Finland could be waiting to see the outcome of the Ukraine invasion before they make their decision but honestly, the conflict is not good for both countries because it will affect the economic structure in the market and if the Russian government invades Finland in the future as you said. There's a chance for Russia to loose their reputation.

[af_newbie]

The Russian government invaded Ukraine to prevent other Northern Europe countries from joining the NATO but it shows that some neighboring countries to Russia appear not to care about what the Russian may do after their decision in joining NATO.
All this happens because the Russian government is doing things with military force instead of them persuading and maturely talking with their neighboring countries about their decision in joining NATO.
In the meantime, let's wait and see if the Finland decision will push through.

I think they were just waiting for Ukraine to get invaded and when they saw the result was not what they expected, they quickly jump to conclusion that they really need to join NATO for their protection and support in case of a Russian sudden invasion. It seems like when they will be invaded as well in the future, they expected war supplies from their alliances and some sanctions against the invader. But things like this are not good for their country because what if they miscalculated? what if their country won't be invaded rather it would be destroyed with one single nuke? they need to consider reviewing back their decisions if they wanted to protect their citizens.

You make a point, Finland could be waiting to see the outcome of the Ukraine invasion before they make their decision but honestly, the conflict is not good for both countries because it will affect the economic structure in the market and if the Russian government invades Finland in the future as you said. There's a chance for Russia to loose their reputation.

I don't think Russia will lose its reputation.  It is clear as day that Russia is a terrorist state to anyone with an ounce of humanity in them.

Russians and their reputation as sadistic killers of civilians will follow them for decades.

[suzanne5223]

The Russian government invaded Ukraine to prevent other Northern Europe countries from joining the NATO but it shows that some neighboring countries to Russia appear not to care about what the Russian may do after their decision in joining NATO.
All this happens because the Russian government is doing things with military force instead of them persuading and maturely talking with their neighboring countries about their decision in joining NATO.
In the meantime, let's wait and see if the Finland decision will push through.

I think they were just waiting for Ukraine to get invaded and when they saw the result was not what they expected, they quickly jump to conclusion that they really need to join NATO for their protection and support in case of a Russian sudden invasion. It seems like when they will be invaded as well in the future, they expected war supplies from their alliances and some sanctions against the invader. But things like this are not good for their country because what if they miscalculated? what if their country won't be invaded rather it would be destroyed with one single nuke? they need to consider reviewing back their decisions if they wanted to protect their citizens.

You make a point, Finland could be waiting to see the outcome of the Ukraine invasion before they make their decision but honestly, the conflict is not good for both countries because it will affect the economic structure in the market and if the Russian government invades Finland in the future as you said. There's a chance for Russia to loose their reputation.

I don't think Russia will lose its reputation.  It is clear as day that Russia is a terrorist state to anyone with an ounce of humanity in them.

Russians and their reputation as sadistic killers of civilians will follow them for decades.

When said Russia will lose its reputation, I was talking about the level of fear people had for them due to their government's sadistic habits and this is still because of political error.
By the way, I am seeing things about the Russian invasion of other Northern EU countries due to their decision in joining NATO. I think this could lead to a change of political leader in Russia but time will tell though.

[LTU_btc]

So, Russia should be happy now. Instead of potentially having border with NATO in Ukraine in future, now they will have 1300km border with NATO in Finland, just less than 200km from north capital St. Petersburg, plys Sweden nearby. Actions of Russia in Ukraine simply left no other choice for Sweden and Finland and pushed to join NATO. They can't stay neutral.

Putin said today that he has no problems with Finland and Sweden. But if their entry into NATO entails existential threats to Russia in the form of NATO military bases or US nuclear arsenals appearing on their territory, then Russia will make its military-technical response, whatever that means.

Is it not double standard? Why Finland and Sweden can join NATO and Ukraine can't. Before war started, Ukraine wasn't even close from joining NATO, not even talking about NATO military bases and nuclear weapons there.

[be.open]

So, Russia should be happy now. Instead of potentially having border with NATO in Ukraine in future, now they will have 1300km border with NATO in Finland, just less than 200km from north capital St. Petersburg, plys Sweden nearby. Actions of Russia in Ukraine simply left no other choice for Sweden and Finland and pushed to join NATO. They can't stay neutral.

Putin said today that he has no problems with Finland and Sweden. But if their entry into NATO entails existential threats to Russia in the form of NATO military bases or US nuclear arsenals appearing on their territory, then Russia will make its military-technical response, whatever that means.

Is it not double standard? Why Finland and Sweden can join NATO and Ukraine can't. Before war started, Ukraine wasn't even close from joining NATO, not even talking about NATO military bases and nuclear weapons there.

Ukraine needed to think about this before cultivating an anti-Russian policy and building its national self-identity on the idea of "Ukraine is anti-Russia."

n addition, you talk about the accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO as a fait accompli, but Turkey explicitly expresses its disagreement and readiness to use its veto. Erdogan owes Putin and it seems the time has come to repay the debt.