MOSCOW, January 21. /TASS/. The recent statement by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg about the US-led bloc’s immediacy to grant membership to Finland and Sweden is an inconsiderate attempt to crank up pressure on them in terms of foreign policy, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in response to media questions collected for top diplomat Sergey Lavrov’s press conference. The ministry’s responses were published on its website on Friday.
"We view the NATO secretary general’s remarks about the alliance’s readiness to grant membership to these countries as an inconsiderate attempt to put external pressure on the policy of Finland and Sweden, with whom we share long-standing relations of friendship and whose effective contribution as neutral nations to establishing European security we highly appreciate," the ministry pointed out.
The Russian Foreign Ministry also stressed that maintaining a non-aligned status "is the most effective way for countries to ensure their security" "in these turbulent times." "We expect that NATO will stick to its promise to provide a written response to our draft agreement with the alliance," the ministry emphasized.
Stoltenberg said earlier that Sweden and Finland could join NATO very quickly provided that those countries decided to apply. "They meet NATO standards in most areas. They have very well organized and well governed defense and security institutions. So, in many ways, of course, they are very close to NATO in all aspects," the NATO chief contended. Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, in turn, stated that Finland was not currently discussing membership with NATO.