Finland joined NATO roughly one year ago in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/14051853

A Russian ambassador had harsh words for Finland on Saturday, warning that the country would retaliate against the new member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) if nuclear weapons were placed on Finnish soil.

Finland is one of the newest European countries to join the military alliance, being officially welcomed into the fold in April 2023. The Nordic nation was spurred to seek membership by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and its increased threats of aggression against other nations. Sweden is the latest country admitted to NATO for this reason, joining on March 7.

Both nations announced that they were considering applying for membership in May of 2022, only a few months after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war.

Russia has long viewed NATO as an antagonistic force, given the influence of founding members like the United States and the United Kingdom. NATO members are also obliged to provide military aid to other members in the event of an attack, meaning that Russia risks a much larger conflict should it take action against the likes of Finland.

  • drdiddlybadger@pawb.socialEnglish
    4·
    9 months ago

    See shit like this makes countries want to join NATO is Russia fuckin dumb? If they had been chill NATO would’ve shrank as member nations stopped seeing Russia as a threat.

    • TVgog56789@lemy.lolOPMEnglish
      1·
      9 months ago

      Exactly my point. On one side he is crying about countries joining NATO on the other he is the one provoking them to do exactly that.

      Long before in 2004 when Ukraine was not even bothered to join NATO or EU in any way Putin attempted to assassinate Ukrainian President Victor Yushchenko by dioxin poisoning.

  • nxdefiant@startrek.websiteEnglish
    2·
    9 months ago

    I’d fuck with him

    “We’ve had secret NATO nuke sites since 1998, joining is just a formality at this point. Now that we are formally NATO though, we’ll be refurbishing those sites over the next few years, That’s what all the construction along the border is going to be.”