NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenbergadmitted this Saturday that the Atlantic Alliance is working Deploy a permanent military presence in Eastern Europe To repel a possible Russian invasion.
“Whenever, how war in ukraineThe war has already had long-term consequences for our security. NATO needs to adapt to this new reality. “This is exactly what we do,” Stoltenberg said in an interview with the British newspaper The Telegraph.
According to the Secretary General of the Atlantic Alliance, “in the middle of a very fundamental transformation” Who will decide on permanent deployment at the NATO summit in Madrid in June?
“NATO is the most successful alliance in history for two reasons. One is that we have been able to unite Europe and North America. The other is that we can change as the world changes. Now the world is changing and NATO is changing,” he continued.
Since the start of the occupation on February 24, NATO deploys 40,000 troops to its eastern flankstretching from the Baltic to the Black Sea.
Finland moves towards NATO membership
In other news, a coalition partner in the Finnish government traditionally opposed to joining NATO said this Saturday. openness to participationThis paved the way for Helsinki to become a member of the Atlantic Alliance.
The Finnish Center Party held a security policy vote on Saturday, and the party council was given the mandate to approve its application for NATO membership.
“If the government believes that my name and the moment are right, I, with your support as Chairman of the Center Party, “I am ready to chart the course for Finland’s entry into the NATO defense alliance,” he said. reassured party chairman Annika Saarikko.
Finland has long resisted NATO membership, but Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine has changed views in a country that shares a long border with Russia. Recent polls show that most Finns now support membership, according to the DPA agency.
Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin did not express her opinion, but made it clear that the decision “must be taken soon”. He said on Saturday that a decision should be made this spring, in mid-June, as the security situation in Yle could deteriorate further.
Marin explained that his aim is to make similar decisions at roughly the same time that Finland and Sweden, who are also not members, are also. The invasion of Ukraine has also sharpened the accession debate in Sweden, but the mood in Finland seems to be moving faster than its neighbour.