Finland and Ukraine of course have the right to choose what organizations they belong to. And yes, Finland was never a Russian/Soviet ally, nor did they ever like the Russian. Nobody hates the Russians more than a Finn. But for the longest time, they tried to remain a sovereign nation by not disturbing their aggressive neighbor too much.
No argument from me. I’m simply stating what Russia / the USSR have always believed their God-given rights to influence their immediate neighbors is, and how NATO should have slowly de-escalated the rhetoric after the fall of the Soviet Union instead of providing a reason to stoke the traditional Russian nationalism. A large part of why Putin rose to power is because he sold the idea that the west was gnawing at the weakened Russian bear’s toes and the Russians bought it, because from their point of view, it really does easily look like that.
Finland and Ukraine of course have the right to choose what organizations they belong to. And yes, Finland was never a Russian/Soviet ally, nor did they ever like the Russian. Nobody hates the Russians more than a Finn. But for the longest time, they tried to remain a sovereign nation by not disturbing their aggressive neighbor too much.
No argument from me. I’m simply stating what Russia / the USSR have always believed their God-given rights to influence their immediate neighbors is, and how NATO should have slowly de-escalated the rhetoric after the fall of the Soviet Union instead of providing a reason to stoke the traditional Russian nationalism. A large part of why Putin rose to power is because he sold the idea that the west was gnawing at the weakened Russian bear’s toes and the Russians bought it, because from their point of view, it really does easily look like that.
Not taking sides here, just stating facts.