Finland joins NATO : What the end

Finland has officially joined NATO after its application was ratified in record time. This move was supported by the majority of NATO members, who believed that Finland’s membership would enhance the alliance’s strength in the Baltic area.

However, Sweden’s path to NATO membership remains blocked by Turkey and Hungary.

Why did Finland join NATO?

Finland raced to join NATO after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. It applied in May 2022. After years of public opposition to joining NATO inside Finland, polling now shows Finns embrace the move.

Emma Ashford, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center’s Reimagining U.S. Grand Strategy Program, says that the Finnish people “have a long history of self-defense, resilience. They fought a war against Russia in the 1930s and into the 1940s for their own self-defense against the Soviet Union, and they kept that up through the Cold War.”

As a result, she says, they bring a long view to NATO that is “a lot of other European states could learn from.”

What is NATO?

NATO, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is a political and military alliance consisting of 31 member countries.

It was formed in 1949 to promote mutual Defence and collective security among its members.

Members:

In 1949, there were 12 founding members of the Alliance: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Since then, 19 more countries have joined the Alliance: Greece and Turkey (1952); Germany (1955); Spain (1982); Czechia, Hungary and Poland (1999); Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia (2004); Albania and Croatia (2009); Montenegro (2017); North Macedonia (2020); and Finland (2023).

How the move is significant for Russia?

Finland’s decision to join NATO brings the alliance closer to Russia’s borders, which is a major concern for the Russian government.

Russia sees the expansion of NATO as a threat to its national security and interests in the region.

Finland’s move to join NATO also isolates Russia further, as it is now surrounded by NATO members on most of its borders.

Russia may feel compelled to take countermeasures, such as increasing its military presence on its western borders or ramping up its military capabilities, to counter the perceived threat from NATO and Finland’s membership.

Russia has criticized Finland’s decision to join NATO, calling it a “dangerous historical mistake” that would fray relations with Moscow and undo its status as a confidence-building presence in the Baltic Sea and Europe at large.

Conclusion:

Finland’s decision to join NATO after decades of non-alignment marks a significant shift in Europe’s post-World War II alignment and further isolates Russia.

While the move enhances Finland’s security, it also means losing out on significant trade and tourist revenue.

For NATO, the addition of Finland brings in a military trained to repel an attack from Russia and allows it to station weapons closer to Russia, while for Russia, it brings NATO closer to its doors, which it most strenuously opposes.

As the situation unfolds, India should continue to prioritize regional stability and constructive dialogue between all parties involved.