Finland became NATO’s newest member today (4 April 2023), upon depositing its instrument of accession to the North Atlantic Treaty with the United States at NATO Headquarters in Brussels. NATO Allies signed Finland’s Accession Protocol on 5 July 2022, after which all 30 national parliaments voted to ratify the country’s membership.
“We welcome Finland to the Alliance!,” said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, as Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto deposited Finland’s instrument of accession with the government of the United States, represented by Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The Secretary General then welcomed Finnish President Sauli Niinistö to NATO Headquarters for a flag-raising ceremony to mark the country’s accession to the Alliance.
Speaking ahead of the ceremony, the Secretary General thanked President Niinistö for his outstanding leadership and for leading Finland into the most successful Alliance in history. “I am deeply proud to welcome Finland as a full-fledged member of our Alliance and I look forward to also welcoming Sweden as soon as possible,” he said. “Joining NATO is good for Finland, it is good for Nordic security and it is good for NATO as a whole,” he added. The Secretary General also noted that Finland’s accession shows the world that President Putin failed to “slam NATO’s door shut.” “Instead of less NATO, he has achieved the opposite; more NATO and our door remains firmly open,” he said.
The Finnish national anthem and the NATO hymn were played, as Finland’s flag was raised outside NATO Headquarters for the first time, in the presence of President Niinistö, Foreign Minister Haavisto, Defence Minister Kaikkonen, the foreign ministers of all NATO Allies and invitee Sweden. Simultaneous flag-raising ceremonies took place at Allied Command Operations (SHAPE) in Mons (Belgium) and Allied Command Transformation in Norfolk, Virginia (United States).
Standing alongside President Niinistö, the Secretary General said:
“Finland is safer and NATO is stronger with Finland as an Ally. Your forces are substantial and highly capable, your resilience is second to none and for many years troops from Finland and NATO countries have worked side-by-side as partners. From today, we stand together as Allies.”
Source – NATO
NATO Secretary General: We will welcome Finland as the 31st member of our Alliance
Brussels, 4 April 2023
As NATO foreign ministers meet in Brussels today (4 April 2023), Finland will become the 31st member of the Alliance. “On this very day, in 1949, the Washington Treaty, NATO’s founding treaty, was signed in Washington and it is hard to imagine a better way of celebrating our anniversary than to have Finland becoming a full member of the Alliance,” said Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Previewing the meetings of foreign ministers, the Secretary General said that Allies will address NATO’s support to Ukraine, security challenges emanating from the Middle East and North Africa, the importance of increased defence investments, and NATO’s Indo-Pacific partnerships.
Source – NATO
NATO/France: French Foreign Minister Colonna participates in the NATO foreign ministers’ meeting (Brussels, 4 April 2023)
Paris, 4 April 2023
Mme Catherine Colonna, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, will participate in the NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels on 4 April 2023.
Among other things, the meeting will prepare the next NATO summit, which will be held in Vilnius on 11 and 12 July. The Minister will promote the following priorities at it:
- The Alliance’s unity in support of Ukraine and the allies’ determination to support Ukraine for as long as necessary in the face of Russia’s aggression.
- The implementation of the commitments made at the Madrid summit in June 2022, particularly on the Alliance’s posture: the Minister – who, over the past few months, has been to Lithuania, Estonia and Romania, where France is deploying a military presence – will reaffirm our country’s commitment to contributing to the Enhanced Forward Presence on the eastern flank.
- The need for a deepening of cooperation between the European Union and NATO, in the presence of the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.
An important part of the meeting will also be the flag-raising ceremony that will symbolically confirm Finland’s accession to NATO. Mme Colonna will welcome a major step for the Atlantic Alliance. She will also stress the need for a swift ratification of Sweden’s accession protocol by all the allies so that, at the Vilnius summit, NATO can welcome this 32nd member, which, like Finland, will contribute significantly to the security of the Euro-Atlantic area.
Source: French Government