Finland’s ambassador to Canada says his country is likely to apply for NATO membership and that his government expects members of the Western military alliance to speed up approval. Ambassador Roy Eriksson told reporters in Ottawa on Friday that Finland would be “more vulnerable” to Russian influence from the moment it is implemented until a decision is made, because it will not be protected by NATO’s known collective defense commitment. as Article 5, during this period. interim period. Russia has warned of serious consequences for Scandinavian countries such as Finland for joining NATO. The ambassador stressed that Finland does not believe that Moscow will physically attack it for joining the alliance. However, he said, Helsinki was “examining all possibilities” for how Russia might respond. “The most vulnerable moment is the moment we submitted a possible application for NATO membership and the moment that all countries have ratified it,” Mr Erickson said. “It is during that period, when we are not under the umbrella of Article Five, that things could get messy,” he said. Mr Erickson said he personally believed Finland would be part of NATO, but said it was up to elected officials in the Finnish parliament to decide. Nuclear: How Finland builds energy independence from Russia Since Russia launched its military offensive in Ukraine in February, opinion polls by Finnish media have shown a sharp shift in public opinion in Finland, with the majority now in favor of joining US-led NATO. “People have already moved and politicians must follow,” Erickson said. The envoy said the attack on Ukraine was a sign to the Finns that “this can happen to us and we must secure a place in the western camp”. By the end of next week, the Finnish government will submit an update on the changing security situation in Europe, and this will be the basis for discussions in Parliament, he said. The government will follow a formal recommendation on whether Finland’s alignment will be adjusted and “will most likely include a recommendation for NATO membership,” Mr Erickson said. Finland will clarify the next steps regarding a possible decision to seek NATO membership in the coming weeks, Finnish Foreign Minister Peka Haavisto told reporters in Brussels on Thursday, after attending a meeting of NATO foreign ministers. In March, Russia’s Interfax news agency quoted a Russian Foreign Ministry official as saying that the possible accession of Sweden and neighboring Finland to NATO would have serious military and political consequences. Sergei Belyayev, head of the Nordic department at the Russian Foreign Ministry, said such a situation would require Russia to take “countermeasures”, but did not specify what it might include. Mr Eriksson said the North Atlantic Council – NATO’s governing body – would decide on a membership application and then members would have to ratify it. He said that the Member States have indicated that they will “speed up the process” of approving accession. “We were told because of the situation that most members would try to do [expedite] the process.” The office of Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly was asked on Friday whether Canada would make an effort to quickly ratify Finland’s accession. Spokesman Adrien Blanchard noted that all decisions require the unanimous consent of the Member States and that the door to NATO remains open to “every European country capable of fulfilling its commitments and obligations and contributing to security in the Euro-Atlantic.” space. “ Mr Blanchard made the remarks on April 4 in Helsinki, where he told reporters that he believed “Finland deserves to join NATO”. Regarding the Russian response, Mr. Erickson said that “our authorities have warned that there will be more attacks in cyberspace and any kind of disorder.” He noted that shortly before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the Finnish parliament on Friday, computer systems in Finland were attacked anonymously. “What a coincidence: Shortly before the speech began, we had a massive cyber attack against the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defense and the largest bank, and it lasted an hour.” According to Reuters and the Associated Press The Morning and Afternoon Newsletters are compiled by Globe editors, giving you a brief overview of the day’s most important headlines. Register today.
