On the sidelines of the Ukraine-Russia
crisis, the ongoing developments in Nordic Europe, related to and in response
to the invasion, may just lead to further instability in the region.
Russia’s response came
following NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg’s invitation to Sweden and
Finland to attend a virtual summit regarding the situation in Ukraine.
Russia’s foreign ministry
spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, announced that if Sweden and Finland were to
become members of NATO, the move “would have serious military and
political consequences”. Since the end of the Second World War, both countries
remained militarily neutral.
The two countries had also
consciously remained politically neutral in the 1990s, but that stance changed
when they joined the European Union in 1995. This is, in part, due to their policies
of military non-alignment, but over the past few years, an increase in what both
countries view as Russian aggression has prompted discussions of a potential
NATO membership.In a statement, Zakharova said, “All OSCE member states in their national
capacity, including Finland and Sweden, have reaffirmed the principle that the
security of one country cannot be built at the expense of the security of
others.”
She added: “Obviously, the
accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO, which is primarily a military alliance
as you well understand, would have serious military and political consequences,
which would require our country to make response steps.”
