HELSINKI: Finland formally joined the Nato military alliance on Tuesday in a historic policy shift brought on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, drawing a threat from Moscow of “countermeasures”.

Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto completed the accession process by handing over an official document to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at Nato headquarters in Brussels.

“We welcome Finland to the alliance,” Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at the end of the brief ceremony.

US President Joe Biden said Tuesday he is “proud” to welcome Finland into Nato. “Together — strengthened by our newest ally Finland — we will continue to preserve transatlantic security, defend every inch of Nato territory,” Biden said in a statement. He also called on Turkiye and Hungary to join the rest of Nato “without delay” in ratifying Sweden’s entry into the alliance.

Biden urges Turkiye, Hungary to welcome Sweden to the military alliance ‘without delay’

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hailed Finland’s “historic” accession to Nato and urged the military grouping to admit Sweden next, after its entry was blocked by Hungary and Turkiye.

Earlier, Stoltenberg had noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin had cited opposing Nato’s eastward expansion as one justification for his invasion.

Finnish President Saul Niinisto said Finland’s most significant contribution to Nato’s common deterrence and defence would be to defend its own territory. There is still significant work to be done to coordinate this with Nato, he said.

The Kremlin said Russia would be forced to take “counter-measures” to Finland’s accession. Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the move raised the prospect of the conflict in Ukraine escalating further.

The Ukrainian government also hailed Finland’s move. President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak wrote on Telegram: “FI made the right choice. Nato is also a key goal for Ukraine.”

Ending military non-alignment

The event marks the end of an era of military non-alignment for Finland that began after the country repelled an invasion attempt by the Soviet Union during World War Two and opted to try to maintain friendly relations with neighbouring Russia.

But the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 prompted Finns to seek security under NATO’s collective defence pact, which states that an attack on one member is an attack on all.

Published in Dawn, April 5th, 2023