Russia warns NATO to include Finland, Sweden, World News
Russia’s Foreign Ministry has warned that Finland and Sweden will join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
According to Maria Zakharova, the ministry’s spokeswoman, “NATO’s persistent efforts to draw these countries into orbit for its interests and opportunistic policies have not gone unnoticed by Russia.”
“It is quite obvious that Finland and Sweden will join NATO … would have serious military and political consequences that would require an adequate response from Russia,” she stressed.
“The policy of not being part of any alliances, traditionally conducted by Stockholm and Helsinki, is seen by Moscow as an important factor in ensuring stability in northern Europe,” Zakharova added.
It comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin said that NATO had “fooled” the country with successive waves of expansion since the Cold War.
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Moscow says NATO’s expansion threatens Russia and has violated assurances given to it when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.
It has faced the Western world with sweeping security requirements, saying that NATO must not accept new members and is trying to prevent the United States from establishing new bases in the former Soviet republics.
Also read | Russia can not ‘dictate’ to NATO, says Germany
Speaking on Moscow’s proposal, Zakharova reiterated that “excluding the expansion of NATO and the deployment of weapons systems that threaten our security near the Russian borders will be the key issues in the forthcoming talks with the United States and NATO.” ‘
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday to discuss concerns over Russia’s military build-up at Ukraine’s borders, the US State Department said.
“They discussed NATO’s two-pronged approach to Russia and noted that the alliance is still ready for a meaningful dialogue with Russia while standing united to defend and protect allies,” the Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.
(With input from agencies)