VIENNA, April 4. /TASS/. Finland’s role on the global stage will substantially diminish over Helsinki’s loss of its neutral status following its accession to NATO, Russian Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov wrote on his Telegram channel on Tuesday.
" Finland becomes a NATO Member State. It’s interesting to see how it will affect the role of the country in the world affairs. Certain experience in the field of multilateral relations tells me that in absence of neutral status the role of Finland will significantly diminish," the Russian diplomat stressed.
In May 2022, Helsinki and Stockholm submitted their applications to join the US-led military bloc but the process was blocked by Turkey who demanded that the two countries designate Kurdish organizations as terrorist groups, extradite those suspected of terrorism or being involved in the 2016 coup d’etat to Ankara, and lift bans on weapons supplies to Turkey. Talks between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, then Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg took place in Madrid on June 28, 2022. As a result, a memorandum was signed making it possible for Sweden and Finland to join NATO. Turkey’s parliament approved a draft bill on ratifying Finland’s NATO accession protocol on March 30. On Tuesday, Helsinki was officially admitted to the military alliance as its 31st member.