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Russia 'Concerned' By NATO's Ties With Sweden And Finland

April 13, 2015
by RFE/RL

Russia's Foreign Ministry says moves by Finland and Sweden towards closer ties with NATO were of 'special concern.'

The comments on April 12 come days after the defense ministers Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Iceland said in a newspaper article that northern Europe must prepare for possible crises or incidents because of Russia.

Finland -- which borders Russia --and Sweden are not members of NATO but have increased cooperation with the trans-Atlantic alliance.

Finish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb called the Russian statement 'saber-rattling, but said one should not be startled by it.

'No other country, of course, has a veto over Finland's decisions,' Stubb, who would like to see Finland join NATO, told public broadcaster YLE.

He said the security situation had changed after the crises in Georgia and Ukraine, which will impact security policy in the region.

Russia's forces drove deep into Georgia during a five-day war in 2008.

Recently, Moscow signed deals with the Georgian breakaway republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia that almost entirely integrates their militaries and economies with Russia's.

'One essential pillar of our international (defense) cooperation is what we do with Sweden. It is also clear that we will continue a close cooperation inside the EU and a close partnership with NATO,' Stubb said.

In the article penned for the daily Aftenposten newspaper, the Nordic defense ministers said Russian leaders had shown they are ready to use military means to achieve political goals.

They noted increasing Russian military and intelligence activity in the Baltics and other northern European areas.

The article on April 9 comes amid heightened tensions in Europe since Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine a year ago.

With large Russian minorities living in the Baltics, concerns have grown in the region about the risk of Russian intervention.

Amid such concerns, Estonia has called for a NATO force to be stationed permanently in the Baltic country.

Estonia's President Toomas Ilves told Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper that Estonia was 'part of a group of countries who are mentioned in a threatening way' by Russia.

A U.S. infantry company numbering 150 soldiers is currently NATO's only presence in Estonia, but it is not permanent.

Ilves said 150 soldiers 'is not a lot, so we do think that further stationing of troops at a higher number is only reasonable.'

NATO has pledged a 5,000-strong task force and command centers in six former Soviet republics, including one in Estonia.

Estonia joined NATO in 2004.

With reporting by Reuters and BBC

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-nato-baltics-nordics-/26952328.html

Copyright (c) 2015. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.