Finland confronted Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday that the country will be joining NATO and become an official US ally amid the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia.
The decision came months after the Russian President decided to invade Ukraine, prompting the US and its Western allies to impose crippling sanctions to strangle the country’s economy.
The sanctions have also reportedly pushed Russia to suffer a series of military, economic and diplomatic defeats.
On Saturday, President of Finland, Sauli Niinisto confronted Putin in a video call, explicitly telling the Russian tyrant that Finland would be joining NATO.
According to Niinisto, his conversation with Putin “was direct and straightforward.” He claimed it went “without aggravations.”
However, Kremin disproved Finland President’s claim and released the laconic readout of the conversation and revealed that Putin told his Finnish counterpart that Finland is “making a mistake” by deciding to ally with America.
Putin also released an official statement following Finland and Sweden’s declaration to join NATO, claiming that the NATO memberships posed no direct threat.
“As for the expansion [of NATO], including through new members of the alliance — Finland, Sweden — Russia wants to inform you that it has no problems with these states,” Putin stated during a gathering in Moscow with several leaders from the member countries of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).
If Sweden and Finland join NATO, as is now widely expected, the reach of the West’s powerful military alliance across the vast stretch of Russia’s western border will be larger than at any other time in history. https://t.co/LcOjJBDc8S
— New York Times World (@nytimesworld) May 14, 2022
“Therefore, in this sense, expansion on account of these countries does not pose a direct threat to Russia.” Putin added.
Just like Ukraine, Finland’s geopolitical position is reportedly at Russia’s doorstep, with a 800-mile-long border with Moscow. The country is reportedly close to Russia’s second most important city, the St. Petersburg.
Since the cold war, Finland has been declared neutral. However, due to the current Ukraine crisis, affecting the global economies and the people, the Finnish public opinion shifted in favor of joining the US-led bloc.
Moreover, following Finland’s declaration to join NATO, the Russian president reportedly assured Finland that there would be “no threats to Finland’s security.” However, Putin made it clear that NATO membership could tarnish the relations between the countries.
As a result, Moscow reportedly cut off the electricity that the country has been exporting to Finland.
