Finland’s fresh NATO partnership has the potential to upgrade its Cold Weather Operations in the Arctic, landing a further blow to Vladimir Putin‘s strategic hopes. Eoin Micheál McNamara, a research fellow at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs believes that Finnish membership of the defensive bloc further enhances the bloc’s overall security posture in the high-strategic Arctic region. And for Finland, it means that years have working with NATO from outside have now become a chance to have a say from a seat at the table, influding policy on Putin’s doorstep.
The researcher has argued that Finland has been allowing NATO forces from outside the Nordic region to adapt to the operational challenges posed by the Arctic through regular exercises for cold climates.
He added that this has already enhanced NATO’s « situational awareness » in the region.
Mr McNamara told Express.co.uk from Helsinki: « Finland’s extensive partnership cooperation with NATO over the past decade means that NATO forces from outside the Nordic region have been able to adjust to the operational challenges that the Arctic brings with regular exercises for cold weather operations.
« This has already improved NATO’s ‘situational awareness’ in the region if the security situation deteriorates in the High North and this will improve further now that Finland is a full NATO member with a seat at the table to directly contribute to NATO’s policy planning tasks. »
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The High Arctic is a region of geopolitical competition among various states, including Russia.
For decades, Moscow has sought to protect and assert its sovereignty in the region, as well as counter the presence and influence of other states in the High Arctic.
Russia has also been increasing its military presence in the Arctic, including the deployment of troops, equipment, and infrastructure.
This is seen as part of Russia‘s broader military strategy to protect its interests in the region, safeguard its borders, and project power in the Arctic region.
It comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart on Thursday discussed expanding economic cooperation and bolstering defence ties between their nations, which include a plan to deploy Russia‘s nuclear weapons to Belarus amid the fighting in neighbouring Ukraine.
The Kremlin talks involved senior officials from both countries and followed Putin’s one-on-one meeting with President Alexander Lukashenko on Wednesday.
Putin said there would be « close work » on boosting cooperation under a union agreement that envisions close political, economic and military ties between Belarus and Russia.
Russia used Belarusian territory as a staging ground for invading neighbouring Ukraine and has maintained a contingent of troops and weapons there.
Last month, Putin declared that Moscow planned to put some of its tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, an announcement that marked another attempt by the Russian leader to dangle the nuclear threat to discourage the West from supporting Ukraine.
Such weapons are intended to destroy enemy troops on the battlefield and have a relatively short range and a much lower yield compared with nuclear warheads fitted to long-range strategic missiles, which are capable of obliterating whole cities.
The deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus would put them closer to potential targets in Ukraine and NATO members in Eastern and Central Europe.
Belarus shares a 1,250-kilometer (778-mile) border with NATO members Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.
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