'Finland is making problems for itself' - Russians react to Helsinki joining NATO

Record ID: 1718777

  • Title: 'Finland is making problems for itself' - Russians react to Helsinki joining NATO
  • Date: 4th April 2023
  • Summary: ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA (APRIL 4, 2023) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF FINNISH CONSULATE IN ST. PETERSBURG (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) ST. PETERSBURG RESIDENT, NIKOLAI (NO LAST NAME GIVEN), SAYING: "There is absolutely no doubt that Finland is making problems for itself by joining (NATO), because we used to consider it a brotherly country of the capitalist world, the closest to us in spiri
  • Embargoed: 18th April 2023 13:35
  • Keywords: Finland NATO Russia
  • Location: ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA
  • City: ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA
  • Country: Russia
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Europe,International/National Security
  • Reuters ID: LVA001273504042023RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: People in the Russian city of St. Petersburg said on Tuesday (April 4) that Finland was "making problems for itself" by joining NATO.
    Finland is set to complete a historic security policy shift triggered by Russia's decision to send tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
    Those speaking to Reuters in Russia's "northern capital" - which is only about 150 km (93 miles) from the Finnish border - were unanimous in their negative attitude to the news.
    One person said that "ordinary people always suffer from these kinds of decisions" and others lamented the end of "brotherly" and "good neighbourly" ties.
    The event marks the end of an era of military non-alignment for Finland that began after the country repelled an invasion attempt by the Soviet Union during World War Two and opted to try to maintain friendly relations with neighbouring Russia.
    But Russia's recent military campaign in Ukraine prompted Finns to seek security under the umbrella of NATO's collective defence pact, which states that an attack on one member is an attack on all.
    Finland's accession roughly doubles the length of the border that NATO shares with Russia.
    Moscow said on Monday (April 3) it would strengthen its military capacity in its western and northwestern regions in response to Finland joining NATO.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2023. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register