Finnish Parliament Approves NATO Membership Application; Sweden signed the letter

After two days of debate, the Finnish Parliament today approved the government’s proposal for the country to apply to join the EU. nato (North Atlantic Treaty Organization). The government formalized its intention to join the military alliance on Sunday, 15th, but needed Legislative approval.

Also on Tuesday, the Swedish Foreign Minister, Mom Linde signed the letter that the country will apply to join. nato. However, Sweden’s request should be forwarded to the military alliance with the neighboring country Finland, which is expected to take place in the coming days.

To join the organization, the two countries need the unanimous approval of the member states, and Turkey is the only country that publicly opposes it. However, other members of the alliance have already expressed confidence that they can persuade the Turkish government not to veto Finland and Sweden.

The movement of the two countries is the result of Russia’s war on Ukrainian territory, which is entering its 83rd day today. Ukraine has suffered attacks in a city 75 kilometers from the country’s capital, Kiev, and in the Lviv region, which is already close to the Polish border in the west.

As Finland and Sweden progressed towards joining NATO, Russia decided to withdraw from the Council of Baltic Sea States. Of the 11-member group, only Finland, Sweden and Russia are not part of NATO, this situation needs to change with Sweden and Finland candidates to join the military alliance.

According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the organization has become a “policy tool” against Moscow and “Russian hostility”. “Our presence in CBSS is counterproductive,” he added.

Finland approved

The Finnish Parliament authorized the government’s request to join NATO after the Foreign Affairs Commission announced today that it had approved joining the military alliance. [na Ucrânia] It requires measures to strengthen Finland’s security”.

In the statement, “Russia’s foreign policy based on military power and a security structure based on the division of interests in Europe have been declared for a long time, and it has gained a new dimension with the launch of the war of aggression against Ukraine.” it was said. commission.

There were 188 votes in favor of ratifying the commission’s report, with eight votes against. “Parliament also requires that it receives up-to-date information on the status of its application for membership,” the Finnish legislature’s communications department said, referring to a request included in the commission’s report. said.

The commission’s text stated that “the preventive effect of Finland’s defense will be much greater than it is now, as it will be supported by the actions of the entire alliance” at NATO.

“In the context of a significant deterioration in security, which is considered to be long-lasting, the Commission considers it important to ratify NATO membership for this purpose. Of the security-enhancing options, NATO membership offers an additional strong protection for Finland’s security . . . due to its military deterrent effect,” he said. “This is a solution that strengthens Finland’s defense and NATO’s collective defense.”

The report also dismisses the possibility of military alliance bases or nuclear weapons in Finland, one of Russia’s concerns. “The Commission notes that it is extremely unlikely that NATO will even propose or even consider investing in nuclear weapons in Finland,” the statement said.

“Historical” statutes in Sweden

Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde, “I signed a historic letter of appointment from the Swedish government to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Our NATO candidacy is now officially signed.” said.

According to the chancellor, the Swedish candidacy should be sent along with Finland’s candidacy in the next few days. “We don’t know how long it will take [o processo de adesão]However, we estimate that this may take up to a year,” he said.

Sweden wants to join the military alliance to “guarantee the security of the Swedish people”, as the Prime Minister said yesterday, Magdalena Anderson.

broken neutrality

Sweden and Finland are members of the European Union, but historically they have remained neutral between the West and Russia. However, the invasion of Ukraine caused them to reconsider their neutral status, especially Finland, which shares a 1300 km border with Russian territory. Sweden was quieter, but Finland’s accession would make it the only Baltic Sea country outside of NATO.

Finland, on the other hand, was part of the Russian Empire for over a century and gained its independence in 1917. The two countries currently share a border of about 1,300 kilometers. However, although it became a member of the European Union in 1995 after the Second World War, it decided not to join NATO so as not to alienate the then Soviet Union and then Russia.

Leaders from Sweden and Finland will meet with US President Joe Biden on Thursday (19th).

attacks

The head of the military administration of Lviv, Maksym Kozytsky, said that the attack was carried out on the railway infrastructure of Yavoriv, ​​about 25 kilometers from Polish territory. No injury report. The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed the attack with Kalibr missiles.

According to Russia, the attack included “a large amount of foreign weapons and military equipment prepared to be sent to the Donbass from the United States and European countries,” a separatist region in the east that is now the main focus of the Russian war. hit.

Kozytsky also said that a second attack was averted by the downing of three missiles. According to him, the shots aimed at the region would come from the Black Sea.

In the northern region of Chernihiv, the city of Desna, 75 kilometers from Kiev, was hit by missiles. Regional officials cited deaths and injuries as a result of the attack, but did not give figures. Russia confirmed the attack.

“This proves once again what I have been saying over and over: the war is not over, the war has not left the Chernihiv region, the war has not left our cities,” said Vyacheslav Chaus, the governor of the Chernihiv region.

another border

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said in a report released today that Russian forces also carried out a border offensive in the northeast of the country, in the Sumi region, which is already close to Russia. The Russian army confirmed the attack.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense noted that in Kharkov, the region where the country’s second-largest city is located, “the main efforts of the enemy are focused on defending their positions and preventing the advance of our troops.”

azovstal

Russia’s Defense Ministry said 265 Ukrainian fighters have already left the Azovstal complex, the last point of resistance in Mariupol, a port city in southeastern Ukraine. Of these, 51 were “severely injured”.

According to Russia, they were sent to Novoazovsk, located in the Donetsk region, about 45 kilometers from Mariupol. Novoazovsk is in the zone of pro-Russian separatists.

The Ukrainian government said today it hopes to exchange Russian prisoners for them after the wounded have recovered.

It is believed that there are still around 600 soldiers in Azovstal. The complex has become a symbol of resistance, with hundreds of fighters settled in underground tunnels and bunkers who have fought a war of resistance to prevent Russian troops from taking full control of the besieged port city since the beginning of the war.

The Ukrainian military said the Azovstal defense delayed the transfer of 20,000 Russian soldiers to other parts of Ukraine and prevented Moscow from capturing the town of Zaporizhzhia.

“The ‘Mariupol’ garrison has fulfilled its combat duty,” the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said in a statement, adding that the unit commanders in Azovstal were ordered to save the lives of the remaining soldiers. “The defenders of Mariupol are the heroes of our time,” he added.

War and peace

“Every war ends in peace,” Russian government spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today, according to a quote from the Russian news agency RIA Novosti. “I believe that every war will end in peace, and this will be a world where our voices will be heard, where we will be comfortable, safe and confident in our own feet.”

Peskov said at an event on Tuesday that Western countries are trying to isolate Russia from the world. “This is an economic war.” He also said he believed the West would be ready to prevent Russia from living the way it wanted.

“Sometimes the presence of Russia seems to be a major nuisance to the West, and they are willing to do anything to prevent us from developing what we want and living the way we want,” he said, according to the Russian news agency Tass. “Everything will be fine” for the spokesperson. “And we are confident that we will win, we will achieve all the goals.”

negotiations

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko said that Ukraine “withdrawn” from negotiations with Moscow. Rudenko, quoted by the Russian agency “Interfax”, stated that there would be no negotiations between the two countries in this way, and said, “Ukraine has actually withdrawn from the negotiation process. Negotiations will not progress.”

(with DW, Ansa and AFP)