- Jens Stoltenberg, the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), has announced that Finland has become the 31st member of the alliance, thanks to Turkey’s unanimous vote.
- Despite Russia’s opposition to Finland’s membership, Turkey’s approval has allowed the extension of NATO.
- Finland shares a long border of more than 1,300 kilometers with Russia, and its decision to join NATO was prompted by security concerns following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
- However, Sweden’s application to join NATO has been rejected by Turkey and Hungary.
- Finland’s membership in NATO has been a topic of discussion for many years, with some arguing that it would help to strengthen Finland’s defense capabilities, while others have expressed concerns about potential tensions with neighboring Russia.
- With Finland’s membership, NATO now includes most of the countries in Europe and North America.
NATO:-
- NATO, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is an intergovernmental military alliance established in 1949.
- It was formed as a collective defense pact between North American and European countries to prevent Soviet expansion and protect member states from possible Soviet aggression during the Cold War.
- The founding members of NATO were ten European countries, including the United States, Canada, Belgium, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and the United Kingdom.