Finland does not rule out joining NATO
The issue of Finland joining NATO is not on the agenda, but such a prospect cannot be ruled out.
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This was stated in an interview with Kommersant by the Ambassador of Finland to Russia Mikko Hautala, who noted that his country’s relations with NATO have long been partnerships, and Finland conducts a political dialogue with the alliance and participates in some of the exercises that it organizes.
“In this matter, we always proceed from our own interests, we make decisions depending on whether this or that action contributes to increasing the defense capability of our own armed forces. As for the issue of NATO membership, we are not considering it, but we are not ruling it out. Any state is interested in having different options for action, so we always say that nothing can be ruled out, but this issue is not on the agenda,” the diplomat said.
“We think about our own security and understand that Article 5 on guarantees of collective defense of the Washington Treaty does not apply to us, NATO partners. At the same time, we are closely monitoring the situation and security climate in our region. All this influences the debate in the country. But at the same time, we understand that a decision to join NATO would be strategic and would have serious consequences in a variety of areas. Before a decision of this magnitude, you need to very carefully and deeply examine the needs of society, carefully study all the pros and cons. In general, what I want to say is that it is unlikely that we should expect any surprises in this regard in the foreseeable future. Finland generally does not have an unpredictable foreign or security policy,” Hautala added.
Finland Doesn't Rule Out Joining NATO