Europe is on edge as Russia builds up forces on Finland’s border. Could this frontier be the next conflict zone?
Defense Minister told AFP on Thursday that Finland was closely monitoring Russian military activities near its eastern borders after informing the armed forces in Finland and the international media about their accumulation.
Finland, which dropped decades of the military alliance to join NATO in 2023, has borders with an area of 1340 km (830 miles) with Russia.
It seems that the satellite photos published in the New York Times show an expansion of Russian military infrastructure near the border.
“Russia is building more infrastructure to be able to bring more forces after the war (in Ukraine),” the Finnish Defense Forces told AFP.
“With its allies, Finland” monitors and evaluates Russia’s activities and assessments closely. “
He said that Russia’s movements “to strengthen its armed forces were not surprising to Finland.”
Moscow has repeatedly warned in Finland of the repercussions since it joined NATO after Russia has been widely invaded to Ukraine in 2022.
“We have excellent capabilities to monitor Russian operations. As a coalition member, Finland is a strong security position,” Hakanin said.
He said that Finland has a “strong national defense” on the basis of recruitment and a great reserve strength.
He added: “Our entire society has invested widely in preparation for all types of unrest and crises.”
The Deputy Chief of Staff of the Defense Forces, Major General Sami Normi, told the Finnish broadcaster Yale that Russia’s accumulation near the border was expected.
“This is consistent with what has been evaluated. It is not the issue of a collective building effort,” he told Yle.
He said that the activity did not pose an immediate threat to Finland.
The North country has strengthened its military investments and preparedness since its joining NATO.
In April, it announced that it would reinforce at least three percent of the GDP by 2029 and launch a reform of its defense forces to address the security threat.
Finland closed its borders with Russia in December 2023 after about 1,000 immigrants arrived without visas. Helsinki said the boom had organized it by Russia – a claim that Moscow denied.
This story was originally appeared on Fortune.com
2025-05-23 10:35:00
