As a result of Moscow’s war on Ukraine, which doubles the NATO-led alliance’s border with Russia, Finland became the 31st NATO member on Tuesday.

An Overview

The Kremlin’s massive invasion of Ukraine the year before shattered Europe’s security landscape and prompted Finland and Sweden to abandon decades of non-alignment.

Finland’s attempt to join NATO was stalled by awkward allies Turkey and Hungary for their own distinct reasons, and Stockholm’s progress is still blocked. This is still the quickest membership process in the alliance’s recent history, with the ratification completed in significantly less than a year.

The highly choreographed formalities at NATO headquarters on Tuesday were all that remained. The official documents of Finland’s accession will be given to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who oversees keeping the founding treaty of NATO.

The nation’s blue-and-white flag will then be flown in front of the sparkling headquarters in Brussels alongside those of its new allies, which will be flown between those of Estonia and France. This is a notable day. “It’s a great day for the alliance,” stated NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

End Note

Joining NATO places Finland under the collusion’s Article Five, the aggregate safeguard vow that an assault on one part “will be viewed as an assault against them all”.

Diplomats from the NATO hope that if Erdogan survives the May elections, he will become more accommodating, and that Sweden will join before the July NATO summit in Vilnius.