After Finland’s accession to NATO, Russia will deploy troops and defeat systems near its borders. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in an interview with journalist Dmitry Kiselev for Rossiya 1 and RIA Novosti.
Vladimir Putin called Finland’s entry into the North Atlantic Alliance an absolutely senseless step in terms of ensuring national interests. Russia and Finland, according to him, used to have “simply ideal” relations, the two countries had no claims to each other, including territorial ones.
“We didn’t even have any troops, we removed all the troops from there, from the Russian-Finnish border. Why did they do that? This is an absolutely senseless step from the point of view of ensuring their own national interests. Nevertheless, it’s up to them. That’s what they decided. But we didn’t have troops there, now we will. There were no defence systems there, now they will appear,” the head of state said.
The Russian leader believes that Finland’s accession to NATO has not improved the situation for the country “in bilateral relations, and in Europe as a whole.”
“And I think that they benefited more from the fact that they adhere to neutrality, because it gives certain advantages: at least as a negotiating platform in order to reduce tensions in the same Europe,” – concluded Putin.
Earlier, Vladimir Putin called the Western ideas of a new world order hypocrisy. According to him, they are aimed solely at preserving the neo-colonial system, showing their essence in the form of “hypocrisy, double standards and claims”.