Russia strengthens border defenses after Finland joins NATO

On April 10, the Russian news agency INTERFAX quoted Lieutenant General Andrei Demin, commander of the air defense force and Deputy Commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces, as saying that the country's military has begun to strengthen the protection of its northwestern border due to the increased threat level after Finland joined NATO.

"Finland has become part of NATO. Sweden is preparing to join the alliance. In that context, the air defense forces are practicing defense of the northwestern border of Russia against the increased level of threats," Demin said in an interview.

According to Mr. Demin, the Russian Defense Ministry is also planning to reform the air defense and missile defense forces. "The purpose of the upcoming changes is to improve the Russian air defense system," Mr. Demin said, noting that over the past year, the intensity of combat training of air and missile defense units has increased many times.

Finland officially joined NATO on April 4. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that all necessary procedures had been completed and declared Finland a full member of the alliance.

Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO in 2022 after the conflict in Ukraine broke out. Türkiye, a NATO member, set a number of conditions that both Nordic countries would need to meet in order for Ankara to ratify its membership in the alliance. Turkish authorities later claimed that Sweden had not fully complied with these conditions.

According to Tin Tuc Newspaper