For Russian President Vladimir Putin, the likely prospect of a neighboring country becoming a member of the Alliance has one of the most catastrophic consequences.

If all goes as expected, Finland, with a population of less than 6 million, will redraw the map of European security in a way that was previously unthinkable and could have huge implications for Russia, writes CNN.

According to the Alliance, Russia now shares about 1,215 kilometers of land border with five NATO members. The accession of Finland will mean that the state, with which Russia has 1325 km of border, will officially become a military unit of the United States.

This would not only be bad news for the Kremlin, but the country’s entry into the Alliance would be very useful for NATO.

Despite its relatively small population, Finland is a serious military state that has been unofficially linked to the West for decades. Its military has for decades used equipment purchased from the United States that is compatible with NATO allies, which means they can easily join NATO missions if they so desire.

Why did Finland hesitate to join NATO before?

Many believe that the only reason why Finland did not join the Alliance before the start of the war in Ukraine was simple pragmatism.

“The security of Finland has always been based on two concepts: the first is geography and history; the second is idealism and realism,” said former Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb.

He noted that, given history, the most real threat to Finland’s national security is Russia, which could create even more chaos in the region . Therefore, joining NATO becomes a pragmatic option.

” Finland’s default ideology has been a survival ideology. Over the past 100 years, we have become a strong, sovereign country with a high standard of living. We had to sacrifice land to keep the peace ,” said Charlie Salonius, a leading global security researcher at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs. Parsnip.

Finland in NATO is a blow for Putin

According to experts, Finland’s accession to NATO will undoubtedly be a serious blow for Putin . This would not only mean for the Russian Federation these additional 1,325 kilometers of a common border with the Alliance, but also symbolically this would later result in the unification of the anti-Putin coalition that arose after the invasion of Ukraine. Countries once neutral now provide funding and weapons to Ukraine, and Putin is an international “pariah” with fewer allies every day.

It will also extend NATO’s reach into northern Europe all the way to the Arctic , a region that is gaining in increasing geopolitical importance through its natural resources, strategic location and numerous territorial claims, notably from Russia, Finland and the US.

Sweden, Finland’s neighbor to the west, is also considering joining the Alliance – and Finland’s entry would make that even more likely , as both countries have traveled similar paths since the start of the war in Ukraine.

Russia is already launching propaganda about Finland as a country of “Nazis”

Of course, there are concerns about how Russia might react if Finland expresses its desire to join NATO.

Russia is already launching a disinformation campaign against it , according to former assistant chief of Finnish defense intelligence Martti Kari. “The main theme is that Finland is a Nazi country because we fought against the Soviet Union in World War II along with Nazi Germany,” he said.

He predicts that Russia could violate Finnish airspace and disrupt its activities at sea, as well as step up its intelligence operations against the country.

According to Associate Professor at the Norwegian Defense College Haakon Lunde Saksi, any move towards Finland’s NATO membership “is likely to result in a Russian military build-up along NATO’s new border with Russia, which will not benefit Finland or European security. However, the expert believes the benefits far outweigh” possible negative consequences of a slightly larger Russian military presence along the border with Finland.

Note that the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov said that Finland’s entry into NATO would threaten Russia , because the expansion of the Alliance makes “the continent unstable.” Therefore, Russia gathered to “carry out an analysis” after Finland joined NATO.

By the way, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that Finland’s membership would strengthen both the Alliance and the country itself. According to him, Finland’s accession to NATO will be “smooth and fast.”

Read also: