Putin warns Finland of ‘mistake’ in joining Nato
A FURIOUS Vladimir Putin yesterday warned Finland’s president that he was making a mistake by joining Nato.
Following a tense call in which Sauli Niinisto confirmed his country’s intention formally to seek entry to the military alliance within days, the Kremlin warned of a ‘negative impact on Russian-Finnish relations’ and said Mr Putin had stressed the ‘end of the traditional policy of military neutrality would be a mistake since there is no threat to Finland’s security’.
It came as Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov accused the West of launching ‘a total hybrid war’.
In what was seen as a threat to use nuclear weapons, Mr Lavrov said, ‘It is difficult to forecast how long this will all last, but it is clear that the consequences will be felt by everybody without exception’.
‘We’ve done everything to avoid a direct clash but the challenge has been thrown to us and we accept it. Cancel culture against everything Russia is being used against us.’
Furious about Finland’s Nato move, Russia yesterday cut electricity supplies to the country with which it shares a 1,300km border.
Sweden has also expressed a desire to join the military alliance of 30 Western powers.
Mr Niinisto said he had told Mr Putin that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had ‘altered the security environment of Finland’.
He said: ‘The conversation was direct and straightforward and it was conducted without aggravations.’
Finland and Sweden’s desire to join Nato has infuriated Russian hardliners. One senior Putin ally threatened to reduce the
US to ‘nuclear ashes’, while Aleksey Zhuravlyov, deputy chairman of the defence committee of the Duma, or state assembly, said they were ‘joining an alliance that wants to destroy Russia. Therefore, we want to destroy them in response.’ Mr Zhuravlyov warned darkly that Finland could be hit with nuclear bombs in ‘10 seconds’ and Britain in ‘200 seconds’.
Meanwhile, Russian TV presenter Dmitry Kiselyov told viewers that Britain should be flooded, first using Russia’s Satan2 missiles and then its ‘underwater robotic drone Poseidon’. Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev this week also warned of the growing risk of nuclear war.
The applications by Finland and Sweden might be blocked by Turkey, whose president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, says he could not support the applications because of Kurdish terrorist organisations in Nordic countries. All 30 Nato member states must agree new entrants.
Foreign ministers from the G7 nations – Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US – declared they would never recognise new borders as a result of Russia’s invasion, would extend sanctions and continue to supply Ukraine with weapons.