Finland and Sweden may be considering joining NATO after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, paving the way for the countries to join the alliance for the first time.
The two countries are in a strategic location in relation to the war, as Finland shares an 830-mile border with Russia and Sweden is home to several important maritime routes through the Baltic Sea. Although Russia has not explicitly threatened either country, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned the two against joining NATO just days after the country invaded Ukraine.
“[Joining NATO is] a possibility, but it’s really — it’s not totally up to Finland. It’s, of course, up to NATO members,” Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told CNN on Monday. “But this is the first time this has been sincerely debated in Finland because of this majority of the population.”
Both Finland and Sweden have been historically neutral, even before joining the European Union in 1995. The two are part of NATO’s Enhanced Opportunities Partners, meaning the two work closely with NATO despite not being members, and they have frequently participated in NATO Response Force joint operations.
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Public support in Finland to join NATO largely increased sharply after the invasion of Ukraine, with 53% of Finns expressing support for membership compared to just 19% in 2017, according to a Yle poll conducted at the end of February.
“There’s maybe more popular support for the NATO membership now in Finland. Finns are very security-oriented people,” Haavisto said. “This is the first time we have a majority in our opinion polls, majority of our population supporting the NATO membership, so, of course, this is a topic that will be certainly be discussed by the Parliament.”
Finland President Sauli Niinisto hinted last week the country might be seriously considering joining the alliance as the country weighs possible consequences.
“This is something we are now open to discussion with our Parliament,” he told Fox News. “We [are] trying to define all the circumstances and the risks and all the benefits and are doing that quite efficiently and as soon as possible.”
NATO membership can be a yearslong process, requiring all 30 members to approve new countries. However, some high officials in NATO said they believe the decision could be expedited due to Finland’s and Sweden’s “high level of interoperability” with the alliance.
“If they decide to apply, and that’s a 100% Finnish and Swedish decision, then I think it is possible to make a decision quickly and for them to join quickly,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said. “At the end of the day, this has to be a political decision, but when you see the high level of interoperability between NATO and Finland and Sweden, when you see to what degree all of them meet NATO standards, it should be possible to allow them into our alliance quite quickly.”
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights reported on Sunday there had been 596 civilians killed and another 1,067 wounded in Ukraine so far. Roughly 40 children were among those who were killed.
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There are concerns Russia could continue and possibly ramp up its attack strategies within Ukraine, prompting retaliation such as sanctions and business closures from several countries worldwide.
“This time, Russian behavior and what we see in Ukraine poses a threat for the whole Europe, I think, and that’s the reason why for the first time ever, the European Union reacted in the way it’s reacting,” Haavisto said. “The whole countries together started to support Ukraine, started to send military help. We have seen a more united European Union [than we have in] years.”
