RT.com
14 May 2022, 20:13 GMT+10
Latvia's foreign minister has embraced Finland and Sweden's plans to join the alliance
Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics has said his country approves of Finland and Sweden joining NATO, noting that their addition to the US-led military bloc will turn the Baltic Sea into "a NATO sea" in a Friday interview with the Financial Times.
Along with his counterparts in Estonia and Lithuania, Rinkevics expressed his eagerness to ratify the membership applications of the two Nordic countries. All three told the Times they would benefit from Finland and Sweden's military strength, particularly Finland's US fighter jet fleet.
Despite his unmitigated support for the accession of Russia's northern neighbors to NATO, however, Rinkevics is hoping for more NATO troops in his country. The transformation of the Baltic into a NATO asset "does not change our demands for NATO increase in [the] Baltic region," the FM said, adding that "there are still issues to be addressed" and that "the current security situation requires bolder plans by the alliance."
While NATO sent 1,000 extra troops each to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania from European member states earlier this year, the countries have demanded more, calling for brigades of 3,000 to 5,000 soldiers and an air defense upgrade that would enable them to shoot down Russian planes.
Before Moscow's attack on Ukraine, the Baltics claimed to be concerned about Russia potentially invading their region via the Suwalki gap, the comparatively short (65km) border region between Poland and Lithuania sandwiched between Belarus and Russia's Kaliningrad region. All three nations are reportedly increasing their defense spending to 2.5% of GDP, well above the NATO requirement of 2%.
Russia warned on Thursday that Finland joining the bloc would pose a direct threat and require a response from Moscow following the country's announcement that it planned to seek membership with an eye toward submitting a formal application as soon as next Monday. Finland shares an 833-mile (1,340-kilometer) land border with Russia.
Sweden reportedly plans to make its own formal request to join NATO next week, though some factions of the government are more enthusiastic than others regarding the prospect.
(RT.com)
Get a daily dose of Irish Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Irish Sun.
More InformationBELGRADE, Serbia: Belgrade was paralyzed this week by a series of bomb threats, including against schools, bridges, restaurants and a ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: In a tweet this week, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos criticized President Joe Biden for the second time in ...
TEHRAN, Iran: According to social media posts, protests that began last week across Iran over a reduction in state subsidies ...
BEIJING, China: China's Foreign Ministry rebuked the U.S. for changing the wording about Taiwan on the State Department website, stressing ...
VATICAN CITY: While recovering from knee problems that have forced him to use a wheelchair last week, Pope Francis announced ...
SIALKOT, Pakistan - Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has claimed that a plot to kill him was being hatched, ...
BELGRADE, Serbia: Belgrade was paralyzed this week by a series of bomb threats, including against schools, bridges, restaurants and a ...
MADRID, Spain: In a coordinated move last week, Spain and Portugal approved a temporary cap on natural gas prices.The move ...
BERLIN, Germany: Citing Interior Ministry data, Welt am Sonntag newspaper has reported that more than 700,000 people fleeing the war ...
DOLNI MORAVA, Czech Republic: The world's longest pedestrian suspension bridge has opened at a mountain resort in the Czech Republic. ...
ZAGREB, Croatia: Croatian lawmakers have voted to allow the introduction of the euro currency in 2023. Lawmakers voted 117-13 to ...
DUBLIN, Ireland - Foreign Minister Simon Coveney has condemned "disgraceful scenes of police brutality" at the funeral of Al Jazeera ...