Russia has no issue with Finland or Sweden joining NATO. However, it will respond if NATO builds more military bases near its borders. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said this.
Finland left its neutral policy and joined NATO in April 2023. It said the Ukraine war made it feel unsafe. Sweden joined in 2024 for the same reason. Russia said it will now change its defence plans in the northwest. However, it also said that Finland and Sweden joining NATO is not a big threat like Ukraine.
Peskov said NATO bases have slowly started to appear in Finland. He said in an interview with a French magazine called Le Point. Russia is taking steps to make itself safer. The military will do what it thinks is needed.
Peskov said Russia never had any problems with Finland or Sweden. He also said Russia would not attack them. “Luckily, no one in the Baltic or Finland is shooting at Russians from tanks or planes,” he said. “But this has been happening in Donbas since 2014.”
A NATO report last month said the group is adding Finland and Sweden to its plans. It is also building a presence in Finland. The report praised Sweden. It is taking the lead in NATO’s work in Finland.
NATO chief Mark Rutte said member countries are also working together in the Arctic. They want to protect this area as their own land.
President Vladimir Putin also spoke about this at the Arctic Forum last month. He said Russia is watching the north closely and will respond accordingly.
Putin said NATO is treating the Arctic like a place for future war by training its soldiers there. This includes new members like Finland and Sweden.
He said Russia is answering this by making its army stronger. It is also fixing and upgrading its military buildings.
