The Foreign Ministry’s legal chief considers it possible that Russia will protest Finland’s application for NATO membership, citing international agreements.
State Department has submitted in advance to the Defense Alliance NATO international agreements binding on Finland, which may be relevant when considering Finland’s membership. The agreements concern, among other things, Åland’s demilitarized status and Finland’s relations with neighboring Russia.
Finland however, binding obligations are not considered an obstacle to the submission of an application for NATO membership by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This is the assessment of the Chief Justice Kaija Suvanto from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the same is stated in a report published by the Government on Sunday.
“None of our existing obligations require termination or modification [Natoon] due to accession, ”Suvanto tells STT.
However, he considers it possible that Russia will also object to Finland’s membership in NATO along diplomatic routes. Representatives of the Russian administration have repeatedly stated that Russia does not sympathize with Finland’s and Sweden’s possible NATO membership.
“It is possible that Russia will express its position by note or orally and consider that there is some violation of the agreement,” Suvanto said. He said it would ultimately be up to politicians to respond to such an objection.
Finland has committed itself to a number of international agreements. In terms of relations with Russia, the NATO process has assessed three security-relevant entities: the 1992 state agreement between Finland and Russia, the 1947 Paris peace agreement and the agreements on the demilitarization of Åland. Läs artikel