Häkkänen Rejects Reported Russian Demand That Finland Leave NATO

Finnish Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen dismissed the reported demand at a short briefing in Parliament in Helsinki on Friday, after Bild said Moscow had asked Finland to leave NATO during this week’s talks in Abu Dhabi.

“Such matters are in no way a matter for negotiation. Russia knows that. This is absolutely outrageous to even suggest such a thing,” Häkkänen said, according to the Finnish public broadcaster Yle.

Helsinki Answers a Reported Demand

Bild reported that informal proposals circulated in Abu Dhabi would require Finland to leave the alliance and return to its pre-membership status, and would bar NATO bases in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Clash Report earlier set out that account in a report on the German newspaper’s claims.

The Kremlin denied the Finland demand. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he was “not aware,” that it “was not put forward” and that “this was not discussed for sure,” RIA Novosti reported. Häkkänen said Finland had not been told that such a demand was presented in Abu Dhabi.

Russia Is Testing the West

Häkkänen said Russia had been advancing similar claims for years, including in its 2021 ultimatum, and wanted NATO countries to impose restrictions that served Moscow’s interests.

“The softer the West is towards Russia’s military ambitions, the more Russia will test further and further,” he said, according to Yle. “Russia will test as far as the West’s softness allows.”

He expressed little optimism about the Abu Dhabi talks, saying Russia was not negotiating in good faith but was widening its demands to limits on NATO. “There’s nothing new here,” he said.

U.S. envoys had already asked Moscow to submit a new European security proposal.

Ministers Draw the Same Line

Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen, also speaking to reporters at Parliament, said it was unsurprising that Russia might have views on Finland’s membership, but that the decision was not Moscow’s to make.

“It is clear as day that it is a matter for Finland and the alliance to decide on NATO membership. This is also how we will act,” she said, according to Yle.

Valtonen said reports that Russia was extending talks about its war in Ukraine to Europe’s security architecture suggested Moscow was “in no hurry to reach an agreement.” She called on Russia to accept a ceasefire, noting that Ukraine has been ready for one “all along.”

Prime Minister Petteri Orpo told Kauppalehti that such issues do not belong on the negotiating table. Finland joined NATO on April 4, 2023, after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In Dublin on Thursday, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Europe would not accept a security deal dictated by the United States or Russia.