In a momentous change brought on by the conflict in Ukraine, Finland has joined NATO, angering Moscow.
Tuesday afternoon, over a year after Helsinki formally submitted its application for membership, the Finnish flag was raised at the headquarters of the greatest military alliance in the world in Brussels.
Pekka Haavisto, the foreign minister of Finland, earlier concluded the process of admittance by delivering a formal paper to Antony Blinken, the secretary of state of the United States, whose department is the repository for documents related to NATO membership.
The move is a political and strategic setback for Putin, who has long criticised NATO's expansion toward Russia and partially cited that as justification for the invasion.
In response to what it described as security risks brought on by Finland's participation, Russia forewarned that it would be compelled to take "retaliatory actions". Russia also stated that if any extra troops or equipment were sent to the 31st member of NATO, it would increase its forces close to Finland.
Tuesday afternoon, over a year after Helsinki formally submitted its application for membership, the Finnish flag was raised at the headquarters of the greatest military alliance in the world in Brussels.
Pekka Haavisto, the foreign minister of Finland, earlier concluded the process of admittance by delivering a formal paper to Antony Blinken, the secretary of state of the United States, whose department is the repository for documents related to NATO membership.
The move is a political and strategic setback for Putin, who has long criticised NATO's expansion toward Russia and partially cited that as justification for the invasion.
In response to what it described as security risks brought on by Finland's participation, Russia forewarned that it would be compelled to take "retaliatory actions". Russia also stated that if any extra troops or equipment were sent to the 31st member of NATO, it would increase its forces close to Finland.
