{"id":1475814,"date":"2022-05-15T08:15:31","date_gmt":"2022-05-15T12:15:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1475814"},"modified":"2022-05-15T08:15:33","modified_gmt":"2022-05-15T12:15:33","slug":"finland-to-apply-to-join-nato","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/finland-to-apply-to-join-nato\/","title":{"rendered":"Finland to Apply to Join NATO"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">12<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffinland-to-apply-to-join-nato%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1475814&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div class=\"PageBuilder-col-full PageBuilder-col PageBuilder-article\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"PageBuilder-col-full PageBuilder-col PageBuilder-article\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"PageBuilder-col-9 PageBuilder-col PageBuilder-article\">\n<div class=\"RenderKeyPoints-keyPoints\" id=\"RegularArticle-KeyPoints-4\" data-test=\"keyPoints-1\" data-analytics=\"RegularArticle-keyPoints-4-1\">\n<div class=\"RenderKeyPoints-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"RenderKeyPoints-list\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<ul>\n<li>Finland will apply for membership in NATO, the country&#8217;s president said Sunday.<\/li>\n<li>It&#8217;s a historic move for the Nordic country, which has had a decades-long policy of military neutrality until now.<\/li>\n<li>Finland shares an 830-mile border with Russia; if it joins the military alliance, the land border that Russia shares with NATO territories would roughly double.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ArticleBody-articleBody\" id=\"RegularArticle-ArticleBody-5\" data-module=\"ArticleBody\" data-test=\"articleBody-2\" data-analytics=\"RegularArticle-articleBody-5-2\">\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbed\" id=\"ArticleBody-InlineImage-107061313\" data-test=\"InlineImage\">\n<div class=\"InlineImage-wrapper\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbedCaption\">Finland&#8217;s Prime Minister Sanna Marin (L) and President Sauli Niinisto.<\/div>\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbedCredit\">Heikki Saukkomaa | Afp | Getty Images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>Finland will apply for membership in NATO, the country&#8217;s president said Sunday, in a historic move for the Nordic country, which has had a decades-long policy of military neutrality.<\/p>\n<p>In a press conference alongside Prime Minister Sanna Marin, President Sauli Niinisto said: &#8220;Today, we, the president and the government&#8217;s foreign policy committee, have together decided that Finland &#8230; will apply for NATO membership.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>He added that being a member of the military alliance will &#8220;maximize&#8221; Finland&#8217;s security after Russia&#8217;s unprecedented invasion of Ukraine in February.<\/p>\n<p>Marin described that move to apply as an &#8220;important decision&#8221; based on a &#8220;strong mandate.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We hope that the parliament will confirm the decision to apply for NATO membership during the coming days,&#8221; she added. The formal application is expected to be submitted next week.<\/p>\n<p>Marin said Finland has been in close contact with NATO and its members over the decision. Last week, Marin and Niinisto said the country should <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2022\/05\/12\/finland-announces-bid-to-join-nato-in-historic-move.html\">apply to join NATO &#8220;without delay.&#8221;<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\">&#8216;Radical change&#8217; in policy<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>Finland shares an 830-mile border with Russia; if it joins the military alliance, the land border that Russia shares with NATO territories would roughly double.<\/p>\n<p>As such, there is a risk the move from Helsinki could spark aggression from Russia, where President\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/vladimir-putin\/\">Vladimir Putin<\/a>\u00a0has repeatedly expressed his opposition to NATO&#8217;s enlargement.<\/p>\n<p>Finland&#8217;s Niinisto said he spoke to Putin on Saturday and informed him of his country&#8217;s decision.<\/p>\n<p>Last week, Russia&#8217;s foreign ministry said Finland joining NATO would be a &#8220;radical change&#8221; in the country&#8217;s foreign policy. &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2022\/05\/12\/russia-threatens-retaliatory-steps-if-finland-joins-nato.html\">Russia will be forced to take retaliatory steps<\/a>, both of a military-technical and other nature, in order to stop threats to its national security arising,&#8221; it said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>Russia has land borders with 14 countries and five of them are NATO members: Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland and Norway.<\/p>\n<p>Finland has been reviewing its security policy following Russia&#8217;s invasion of Ukraine, which showed the Kremlin is willing to attack a neighboring nation. Finland has been invaded in the past \u2014 in 1939, the Soviet Union attacked Finland in what became known as the Winter War.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\">Opposition from Turkey<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>One potential stumbling block to Finland joining the alliance is Turkey, the NATO member with the second-largest military after the U.S.<\/p>\n<p>Ascension for a new member state requires consensus approval from all existing members.<\/p>\n<p>The country&#8217;s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Thursday: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2022\/05\/13\/erdogan-says-turkey-doesnt-support-sweden-finland-joining-nato.html\">&#8220;We don&#8217;t hold positive views&#8221; on Finland and Sweden&#8217;s potential membership<\/a>. Sweden is expected to follow Finland and also apply to join NATO in the near future.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier Sunday, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2022\/05\/15\/russia-ukraine-live-updates.html\">NATO&#8217;s deputy secretary general struck a confident tone<\/a> on Finland and Sweden potentially joining the group.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking to reporters in Berlin, Mircea Geoana said the two countries were already the closest partners of NATO.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I am confident that if these two countries will decide, in the next few days I understand, to seek membership in NATO, that [we] will be able to welcome them and to find all conditions for consensus to be met,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>On Turkey, Geoana added: &#8220;They expressed concerns that are addressed and discussed in between friends and allies.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>NATO \u2014 or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization \u2014 was founded in 1949 by the U.S., Canada, and several Western European nations\u00a0to provide collective security against modern Russia&#8217;s forebearer, the Soviet Union.<\/p>\n<p>Ever since its foundation, the alliance has had a thorny relationship with the Soviet Union throughout the Cold War and, following its collapse in 1991, the Russian Federation.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 <em>CNBC&#8217;s Natasha Turak contributed to this report<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"WatchLiveRightRail-inline WatchLiveRightRail-container\" id=\"RegularArticle-WatchLiveRightRail-7\" data-test=\"watchLiveRightRail-4\" data-analytics=\"RegularArticle-watchLiveRightRail-7-4\">\n<div class=\"WatchLiveRightRail-contents\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/live-tv\/\" class=\"WatchLiveRightRail-wlButton\">WATCH LIVE<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"denied:data:image\/svg+xml;base64,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\" class=\"WatchLiveRightRail-logo\" alt=\"logo\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/live-tv\/\" class=\"WatchLiveRightRail-wlButtonMobile\">WATCH IN THE APP<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"PageBuilder-col-9 PageBuilder-col PageBuilder-article\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"PageBuilder-col-12 PageBuilder-col PageBuilder-article\">\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Finland will apply for membership in NATO, the country&#8217;s president said Sunday. It&#8217;s a historic move for the Nordic country, which has<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":498,"featured_media":1894267,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1475814","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1475814","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/498"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1475814"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1475814\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1894267"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1475814"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1475814"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1475814"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}