(CNN) Finland officially became the 31st member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on Tuesday, marking a major change in the security landscape in northeastern Europe that adds about 1,300 kilometers (830 miles) to the border with alliance with Russia.
The Nordic country’s accession was sealed during a formal ceremony at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Tuesday.
Finland’s acceptance of the US-led security alliance dealt a blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has long sought to undermine NATO, and before invading Ukraine, asked the bloc to refrain from further expansion.
The attack instead prompted non-aligned Finland and Sweden to abandon their neutrality and seek protection within NATO, although Sweden’s attempt to join the bloc was blocked by alliance members Turkey and Hungary. .
On the eve of Tuesday’s ceremony, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced the raising of the Finnish flag for the first time at the alliance’s headquarters in Belgium, saying “this is a good day for the security of Finland , for Nordic security, and for NATO as a whole.”
But Russia has warned that further NATO expansion will not bring more stability to Europe, and on Monday said it would increase forces near Finland if the alliance sends any troops or equipment into the bag. member country.
“We will strengthen our military capabilities in the west and northwest if NATO members deploy forces and equipment on Finnish territory,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told the agency. on Russian state news RIA Novosti.
Before Tuesday, Russia shared about 1,215 kilometers (755 miles) of land border with five NATO members. Finland’s accession would more than double NATO’s land border with Russia.
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What does this mean for Finland and the alliance
Finland’s NATO membership guarantees the Northern European country access to the resources of the entire alliance in the event of an attack.
This includes the protection offered by NATO’s Article 5 principle, which states that an attack on one NATO member is an attack on all members. It has been a cornerstone of the 30-member alliance since it was founded in 1949 as a counterweight to the Soviet Union.
NATO membership also better integrates Finnish forces with NATO allies’ training and planning.
The country is no stranger to working with NATO, with its troops regularly participating in NATO exercises under a partner status.
The Finnish Defense Force also operates some of the same weapons systems as other NATO members, including US-made F/A-18 fighters, German-designed Leopard main battle tanks and K9 hoizter used in Norway and Estonia etc.
Helsinki has also signed up to the F-35 stealth fighter program, which will allow its air force to operate seamlessly with NATO members including the US, UK, Norway, Italy, Canada, Poland, Denmark and the Netherlands.
A November report from the Washington-based Wilson Center lists three key areas where Finland benefits from NATO: reserve forces, access to technology and artillery forces.
“Finland’s artillery forces are the largest and best equipped in Western Europe,” the report said.
“With about 1,500 artillery weapons, including 700 howitzer guns, 700 heavy mortars, and 100 rocket launcher systems, the Finnish artillery has more artillery firepower than the combined militaries of Poland, Germany, Norway, and Sweden can now gather,” it said.
The Wilson Center report also noted Finland’s strong cyber security record, noting that the country is home to Nokia, “a major provider of 5G infrastructure,” and one of the three largest provider of the world’s 5G infrastructure, together with Sweden’s Ericsson and China’s Huawei.
And it says that Finland will gather 900,000 reservists trained as conscripts in its armed forces. The wartime strength of the Finnish forces was 280,000 troops, it said.
Soldiers from the Finnish Armed Forces march during the Independence Day parade in Hamina city in December 2022.
Sweden is still waiting
Finland’s accession comes days after Turkey’s parliament voted to approve the country’s membership, clearing the final hurdle for the country to join NATO and ending months of delays.
Finnish and Swedish public support for joining NATO increased after the invasion of Ukraine. “Everything changed when Russia invaded Ukraine,” outgoing Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin said in April. “People’s thinking in Finland, also in Sweden, is changing and changing a lot.”
NATO has an open-door policy, which means that any country can be invited to join if it expresses interest, as long as it is able and ready to support the principles of the founding treaty of the alliance.
However, under the accession rules, any member state can veto a new country from joining.
The majority of NATO members welcomed the applications of Finland and Sweden, but two countries – Turkey and Hungary – began to stop the process.
Turkey and Hungary later softened their stance on joining Finland, which opened its membership door in March, while continuing to block Sweden’s membership application.
There is hope for Sweden’s bid, however. On Monday, Stoltenberg said that Finland’s arrival “in itself is something we should celebrate” but that it is also good for Sweden.
“It makes Sweden more integrated with NATO and makes Sweden more secure,” Stoltenberg said. “At the same time we celebrate and enjoy that Finland is now a full member, we must continue to work to complete the process of access to Sweden.”
CNN’s Brad Lendon contributed to this report.
