The Hindu Editorial Analysis- 11th April 2023 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - UPSC PDF Download

Finland’s journey, from neutral to NATO

Why in News?

Finland has officially joined NATO after its application was ratified in record time. This move was supported by the majority of NATO members, who believed that Finland's membership would enhance the alliance's strength in the Baltic area.

• However, Sweden's path to NATO membership remains blocked by Turkey and Hungary.

What is the Background and Impact of Finland Joining NATO?

• Background:
  • Finland has joined NATO due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has made its smaller neighbors feel the need for the powerful military backing that NATO provides. Finland and Sweden applied for NATO membership after the invasion.
  • Finland which shares a 1,340-km border with Russia, has ended more than 70 years of military non-alignment — in fact, in the Cold War years, a policy of neutrality between the Soviet Union and the West was known as ‘Finlandisation’, and Finlandisation had been one of the options discussed for Ukraine before Russia invaded it.
• Impacts of Joining NATO:
  • Finland has gained better security, but it is losing out on significant trade and tourism revenue it was making from Russia, and its status as a confidence-building presence in the Baltic Sea and Europe at large is being threatened.
  • For NATO, the addition of Finland brings in a military trained to repel an attack from Russia and strengthens its position to station weapons closer to Russia.
  • However, Russia sees this as a dangerous historical mistake that could escalate the Ukraine conflict and has said it will strengthen its military capacity in its west and northwest.

What is NATO?

• About:
  • NATO, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is a political and military alliance consisting of 31 member countries.
  • It was formed in 1949 to promote mutual defence and collective security among its members.
• Members:
  • In 1949, there were 12 founding members of the Alliance: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States.
  • Since then, 19 more countries have joined the Alliance: Greece and Turkey (1952); Germany (1955); Spain (1982); Czechia, Hungary and Poland (1999); Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia (2004); Albania and Croatia (2009); Montenegro (2017); North Macedonia (2020); and Finland (2023).

• Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium.
• Headquarters of Allied Command Operations: Mons, Belgium.
• Special Provision:
  • Article 5: Article 5 of the NATO treaty is a key provision that states that an attack on one member is an attack on all members.
  • This provision has only been invoked once, after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States.
  • However, NATO's protection does not extend to members' civil wars or internal coups.
• Alliances of NATO:
  • Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC)
  • Mediterranean Dialogue
  • Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI)