Finland to Decide Soon Whether to Seek NATO Membership: PM Marin

Tokyo, May 11 (Jiji Press)--Visiting Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin said Wednesday that her country will soon make a decision on whether to seek NATO membership.

"Finland is about to decide on its possible application" to become a NATO member, Marin said in a speech at the University of Tokyo. She said: "Our security environment has now...changed. Russia's war against Ukraine means that the world will look very different in a few years."

A committee comprising Marin, Finnish President Sauli Niinisto and key ministers may make a decision Sunday on Finland's possible NATO membership application, according to a local media report.

Finland, which was defeated by the former Soviet Union in World War II and had part of its territory seized by the country, adopted a neutral policy during the Cold War and has refrained from joining NATO.

If Finland opts to join NATO, that would be a significant turning point in the security environment in Northern Europe and could have an impact on neighboring Sweden, which has also been neutral.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]