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Finland's NATO membership triggered Russia's withdrawal from CFE Treaty — senior diplomat

"The recent accession to NATO of Finland, which is not a member of the CFE Treaty but borders the treaty's area of application, the prospect of the stationing of conventional forces of third countries in Finland, as well as the ongoing procedures for the admission to the alliance of Sweden, which is also not a member of the CFE Treaty, have significantly destabilized conventional forces in northern Europe," Sergey Ryabkov said

MOSCOW, June 29. /TASS/. Finland's accession to NATO and Sweden's admission procedure to the alliance have become the "last straw" that made Russia's withdrawal from the CFE Treaty inevitable, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on Thursday.

"The recent accession to NATO of Finland, which is not a member of the CFE Treaty but borders the treaty's area of application, the prospect of the stationing of conventional forces of third countries in Finland, as well as the ongoing procedures for the admission to the alliance of Sweden, which is also not a member of the CFE Treaty, have significantly destabilized conventional forces in northern Europe," Ryabkov said at a conference of states parties to the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe. He added that these steps were the "last straw" that made Russia's withdrawal from the treaty inevitable.

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