Finland Officially Joins NATO as Member... Biden Urges "Sweden to Join Soon"

Finland officially joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as a member country on the 4th (local time). U.S. President Joe Biden immediately welcomed the move and urged the swift ratification of Sweden's NATO membership as well.

On the afternoon of the 4th (local time), Pekka Haavisto, Finland's Minister of Foreign Affairs, handed over the official accession documents to Tony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State, at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

On the afternoon of the same day, Pekka Haavisto, Finland's Minister for Foreign Affairs, delivered the official instrument of accession, indicating Finland's agreement to the NATO founding treaty, to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. This is the final step in the accession process, which requires new member countries to deposit their accession documents with the United States, the "depositary of the NATO treaty."

Accordingly, Finland becomes NATO's 31st member and will be covered under NATO's collective defense system, which is based on the U.S. nuclear sharing arrangement. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters, calling it a "historic day," that "as a full member, Finland will now receive ironclad security guarantees." Article 5, symbolizing collective defense, states that "an armed attack against one member shall be considered an attack against all members, and assistance, including the use of armed force if necessary, will be provided." Finland, which had declared itself a "militarily neutral country" during the Cold War era, shares a 1,340 km border with Russia, which invaded Ukraine.

President Biden expressed his welcome in a statement, saying, "I proudly congratulate Finland on becoming NATO's 31st member." He added, "I look forward to celebrating Sweden's NATO membership as soon as possible," and "I encourage Turkey and Hungary to proceed with the ratification process without delay." He then targeted Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying, "When Putin started his brutal war against Ukraine, he thought he could divide Europe and NATO," and emphasized, "He was wrong. We are more united than ever."

Russia immediately reacted strongly. According to TASS and other sources, Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesperson, warned on the same day that "Finland's NATO membership is a violation of Russia's security and national interests," and "Russia has no choice but to establish strategic and tactical countermeasures to ensure its security."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.