Topline
Finland and Sweden could make a decision together on whether they will join NATO, Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said on Tuesday, though he said no date has been set for any potential application after media outlets reported the two countries’ leaders could meet in mid-May to announce their plans.
Key Facts
Haavisto told reporters it would be “useful” for Finland and Sweden to launch joint bids for NATO membership.
Sweden has decided to bring the decision before Parliament, meaning “it is possible” that Sweden’s decision could take place on “the same days or at least within the same week” as Finland’s, according to Haavisto.
Haavisto did not give a date for when the two countries may come to a decision, as both countries’ Parliaments need to debate the matter.
Key Background
Russia’s invasion into Ukraine has forced Finland and Sweden to re-evaluate their longstanding military neutrality. “There is a before and after the 24th of February,” Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said during a press conference this month announcing that both countries are conducting security reviews. “The security landscape has completely changed.” NATO is a 30-country alliance joined together by a security agreement that says “an attack against one ally is considered as an attack against all allies,” and requires NATO countries to provide military aid if a member country is attacked. Finland, which declared independence from Russia in 1917, shares an 810-mile border with Russia, and while Sweden doesn’t border Russia, a Swedish island in the Baltic Sea could be a vulnerable target if conflict broke out in the region, DW reports.
Chief Critic
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has warned that Russia would have to “rebalance the situation” with “military and political consequences” if Finland or Sweden went ahead with a bid for NATO membership, claiming that the move would not bring peace or stability to the European continent. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, said earlier this month Russia is prepared to send nuclear weapons to the Baltics if the two countries join the alliance.
Tangent
Finland declared itself neutral at the start of World War II, but the Soviet Union invaded Finland in November 1939. The invasion, called the Winter War, ended in 1940 with Finland ceding 11% of its territory to the Soviet Union as part of a peace treaty. Support for joining NATO in Finland rose sharply following Russia’s invasion into Ukraine, according to a poll conducted by Finnish broadcaster Yleisradio Oy last month, with 62% of respondents in support of the move, up from 21% in 2017.
Further Reading
Finland Joining NATO 'Highly Likely' And Hopefully 'Swift,' Finnish Minister Says (Forbes)
Here's Why Finland And Sweden Might Join NATO — And Why It Matters (Forbes)
