Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin has dismissed Western fears of a possible Russian attack on a NATO member state as ‘complete nonsense’. At the same time, he has troops deployed on the border with Finland.
An attack on a NATO country? US President Joe Biden is using such warnings to divert attention from mistakes in his Russia policy, Putin said in an interview published on Russian state television on Sunday.
Putin’s alleged disinterest
Biden himself understands that “Russia has no reasons and no interest – neither geopolitically, economically nor militarily – to fight with the NATO countries,” Putin said. “We have no territorial claims on each other, no desire to ruin our relations with them,” Putin said, referring to NATO countries.
The Kremlin chief, who has been waging a war of aggression against Ukraine for almost two years, had repeatedly warned against an expansion of NATO eastward, up to Russia’s borders. With his attack on Ukraine, he also wants to prevent the neighboring country from joining NATO.
More troops at the new NATO border
As a result, Putin has announced a stronger military presence in the Russian-Finnish border area. Moscow will establish the “Leningrad Military District” in the northwest of the country and move a “certain number of units” there.
Putin accused the West of “dragging” Finland, which was previously neutral towards the alliance, into NATO. Finland joined the military alliance in April 2023 after signing up as a result of the Russian military offensive in Ukraine that began in February 2022. Putin now said that Finland and Russia had previously had “no disputes” and that all territorial issues had been “resolved long ago.” However, Finland’s accession to NATO will cause “problems”.
Finland and Russia share a 1,340 kilometer long land border. Relations between the two countries are very tense. Last Thursday, Finland announced that it would close all border crossings with Russia again. Helsinki accuses Moscow of deliberately allowing migrants to transit to its western neighbor to destabilize the country, which Russia denies.
Russian menacing background
Ukraine and Western countries repeatedly warn that if Putin wins, he will attack NATO members in the Baltics and other countries in the military alliance.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
