NATO: here are the latest updates on Finland and Sweden’s decision to join
Russia claims Finland and Sweden’s application for NATO membership is a “grave mistake”
Jens Stoltenberg, director-general of NATO, announced yesterday that the security bloc would fast-track the membership of Sweden and Finland. In applying for membership, Finland and Sweden are reversing their traditional and longstanding policies of military non-alignment to expand the alliance’s maritime and aerial surveillance coverage of the region.
Not surprisingly, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Sergei Ryabkov ,said today that Finland and Sweden’s application to join NATO is a “grave mistake”, and they should be under no “illusion” that Moscow will simply accept the decision. According to a report from Russian news agency Interfax, Ryabkov threatened that this “mistake” would have “far-reaching consequences.”
Russia moves nuclear missiles to the Finnish border
A video posted on Russian social media today reveals that President Putin may have started moving nuclear-capable missiles to Finland’s border, just a day after Finland and Sweden announced formal plans to apply for NATO membership. The video shows trucks carrying seven Iskander ballistic missiles – capable of firing nuclear warheads up to 300 miles – moving through the country, reportedly on a highway to Vyborg, on the Finnish border.
Russia may have lost a third of its invasion force
According to the U.K. Defence Ministry’s latest assessment, since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, the Russian military may have lost a third of its forces, and its offensive in the Donbas region has “lost momentum and fallen significantly behind schedule.”
The British defence ministry said on Twitter: “Despite small-scale initial advances, Russia has failed to achieve substantial territorial gains over the past month while sustaining consistently high levels of attrition.”
The MoD further said the offensive was being hindered by the loss of “critical enablers” such as bridging equipment and intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance drones.
“Russian forces are increasingly constrained by degraded enabling capabilities, continued low morale and reduce combat effectiveness,” the MoD stated. “Under the current conditions, Russia is unlikely to dramatically accelerate its rate of advance over the next 30 days.”
What’s more, according to the Institute for the Study of War, Russia is predicted to have run out of combat-ready reservists, forcing it to integrate forces from private military companies and proxy militias with its regular army. The Institute for the Study of War further added that the Russian military is covertly mobilising units of untrained men – including conscripts from Luhansk and Donetsk.
Baltic states push for reinforcement
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, all of which share borders with Russia, are pushing for further security guarantees such as a permanent U.S. military base and aircraft to improve their defences along its eastern flank. Speaking at an informal meeting of NATO ministers in Berlin, Latvia’s foreign minister said that the “existential” threat posed by Russia is here to stay. He added: “A more robust presence of NATO allied forces is needed in each of the Baltic States, which would include reinforcement with anti-aircraft and missile defence systems and other capabilities critically lacking in the region.”
Operation Hedgehog is underway in Estonia
More than 15,000 troops from ten countries, including from Britain, the U.S, Finland and Sweden, will participate in a three-week-long military exercise in the Baltic dubbed “Siil” or “Hedgehog.” Occurring just 40 miles from the nearest Russian base in Estonia, the military drill will be one of the largest exercises to take place since the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991.
A NATO spokesperson said: “Exercises like these show that NATO stands strong and ready to protect our nations and defend against any threat.”