Finland’s flag will be raised Tuesday at NATO headquarters in Brussels as the Russia-bordering Nordic country becomes the 31st member of the North Atlantic alliance.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken called it a “truly historic moment” for the global community as member states welcome Finland to full NATO membership.
Standing beside NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, Mr. Blinken quipped that the alliance could thank Russian President Vladimir Putin for Finland’s decision to join NATO.
“He has precipitated something that he claims to want to prevent by Russian aggression causing many countries to believe they have to do more to look out for their own defense,” Mr. Blinken said.
Finland shares an 830-mile frontier with Russia. Its entry into NATO means the alliance’s border with Moscow has effectively doubled.
Helsinki traditionally had pursued strategic non-alignment between NATO and the Warsaw Pact but changed its policies in May following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which triggered a war, now in its second year.
Mr. Stoltenberg welcomed Finland’s entry into the alliance. He noted that it came on the anniversary of the 1949 Washington Treaty, NATO’s founding pact.
“It is hard to imagine a better way of celebrating our anniversary than to have Finland become a full member of the alliance,” Mr. Stoltenberg said.
Turkey is continuing to drag its feet on allowing Sweden to join NATO. It has accused officials in Stockholm of harboring enemies of the regime of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
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