Putin claimed that Finland's membership in NATO did not present a threat, but now that it has been finalized, Russia states that it will need to take action. On Tuesday, Finland formally joined NATO, while Russia issued a warning about "countermeasures."
In the past, Putin minimized the importance of Finland joining the alliance.
One of the major effects of Russia's invasion of Ukraine is Finland joining NATO.
The significance of Finland entering the NATO alliance was significantly downplayed last May by Russian President Vladimir Putin and his top diplomat, despite Moscow frequently threatening the Nordic nation in the past. At the time, Putin stated that the NATO membership of Finland didn't present an "immediate threat" to Russia. Putin claimed that Finland's membership in NATO did not present a threat, but now that it has been finalized, Russia states that it will need to take action. On Tuesday, Finland formally joined NATO, while Russia issued a warning about "countermeasures."
In the past, Putin minimized the importance of Finland joining the alliance.
One of the major effects of Russia's invasion of Ukraine is Finland joining NATO.
The significance of Finland entering the NATO alliance was significantly downplayed last May by Russian President Vladimir Putin and his top diplomat, despite Moscow frequently threatening the Nordic nation in the past. At the time, Putin stated that the NATO membership of Finland didn't present an "immediate threat" to Russia. However, now that it has been decided, the Kremlin is changing its tone and telling Finland that it will need to take unspecified steps in response.
Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, told reporters at a press briefing that this "forces us to take countermeasures to guarantee our own tactical and strategic security," according to the Moscow Times. However, less than a year ago, Sergei Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, said that Finland's membership in NATO wouldn't "make any difference."
One of the most significant geopolitical effects of Russia's invasion of Ukraine so far is Finland joining NATO, which signifies a fundamental restructuring of Europe's security architecture.
Finland, a member of the EU with an 830-mile border with Russia, battled the Soviet Union in the Winter War during World War II, losing around 10% of its territory, but not before inflicting significant deaths on the invaders. After that war, Finland and the USSR agreed to a pact that guaranteed Helsinki's neutrality throughout the Cold War in return for guarantees that the Soviets wouldn't invade again. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Finland joined NATO as a partner nation but refrained from applying for full membership—at least until Russia attacked Ukraine.
Along with Sweden, the Nordic nation decided to join NATO in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Finland's application has been accepted, however, Hungary and Turkey are still blocking Sweden's application. All current members of the alliance must vote in favour of new members.
In addition to other complaints, Russia has frequently attributed NATO expansion to what was actually an unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. Despite Russia's protests, there was little movement among the alliance's members to expand, and Ukraine was not officially seeking membership at the time. But now that Russia has invaded Ukraine, the extent of its land border with NATO has doubled.
"Putin intended to close the door on NATO. We now demonstrate to the world that he failed "As Finland formally joined the alliance on Tuesday, Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary general of NATO, remarked.
In the violent conflict between Russia and Ukraine, anti-aircraft guns from the 1940s have been seen being used by Ukrainian forces.
The KS-19 systems are the most recent examples of decades-old weapons to resurface in Ukraine.
Old Soviet-era weapons have been used on the battlefield by both Kyiv and Moscow.
Although the deadly and gruelling struggle has witnessed the reintroduction of decades-old weapons that may appear out of place amid modern warfare, Ukrainian forces repelling the Russian invasion have made good use of advanced, high-tech military equipment to inflict heavy damage on Moscow's troops.
Recent sightings of Kyiv's soldiers firing what appeared to be training exercises using anti-aircraft weapons dating back decades included KS-19 100 mm systems. An open-source tool that tracks the usage of weaponry in the Ukraine War, UA Weapons Tracker, alerted its users to the video. Over the past few days, further videos of the weapon in use have been shared on social media.
Since it was originally developed in 1947, just a few years after the end of World War II, the KS-19 is a towed Soviet anti-aircraft gun that has been used in a few battles across Asia and the Middle East.
The rounds that the Ukrainians fired were early 1960s-era models with a range of about 12 miles, according to UA Weapons Tracker.
The use of the weapons against ground targets was also mentioned in the statement. to the purpose against airborne dangers for which they were intended. Russian KS-19s were previously seen in Ukraine during Kyiv's blitz-style counteroffensive in the northern Kharkiv region last October, according to a report published on Sunday by Task & Purpose. Both sides have been using often-outdated military equipment from the Soviet era throughout Russia's unjustified war in Ukraine, occasionally to make up for shortcomings in more advanced and modern weapons. The weaponry that is accessible to Ukraine includes tanks like the T-64 and T-72, fighter jets like the MiG-29, and air defence systems from the Soviet era like the Buk-M1 or S-300. Ukraine also has considerably older weapons, such as the KS-19s mentioned before and Maxim machine guns from World War I. On the battlefield, these systems have been enhanced by ongoing waves of A portion of the security assistance provided by the West includes highly coveted weapons like combat drones, air defence systems, and multiple rocket launchers.
To make up for considerable battlefield losses, Russia has been compelled to remove its old and outdated military equipment from storage. This includes less precise rockets that are more likely to result in higher collateral damage and Soviet-era tanks like the T-62, which are more susceptible to Ukrainian strikes. Recently, Russia was seen removing what seemed to be T-54 tanks from storage that date back to the 1940s.
Britain's military ministry stated in October 2022 that Russian reservists assigned to fight in Ukraine were even arriving with guns introduced in the late 1950s that were likely to be "barely serviceable" since they were stored in bad conditions, highlighting Russia's reliance on antiquated weapons.