Putin: We will respond if NATO deploys troops in Finland and Sweden

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Russia will reciprocate if NATO deploys troops and infrastructure in Finland and Sweden after they join the US-led military alliance.
“Sweden and Finland want to join NATO? Can they do it,” Putin repeated – quoted by The Guardian – on Russian state television, however, and stressed how “they must understand that there was no threat before, while now if they were Military units and infrastructure “will be deployed there. We will have to respond in a similar way and create equal threats to the regions from which the threats come to us.” Putin then said that Moscow’s relations with Helsinki and Stockholm will inevitably be strengthened by their membership in NATO. “Everything went well between us,” Putin said. , but now there may be tensions. Certainly there will be: it is inevitable if there is a threat to us.”

The The United States will strengthen its military presence in Europe, including additional air defense capabilities in Germany and Italy. This is what US President Joe Biden said at the opening of the NATO Summit in Madrid. “Today we send a message that NATO is strong and united,” Biden said. As part of an increased military presence in Europe, the United States will send a 65-man short-range air defense battalion to Italy. announced by the Pentagon. The group, which defines the US Department of Defense, is a unit of the short-range air defense battalion stationed in Germany.

Vladimir Putin wantedFinland model“For Europe and instead gets the ‘NATO model,'” the US president added about Finland and Sweden joining the Atlantic alliance. Leaders will take today too Historic decision to invite Finland and Sweden To become members of NATO, on the basis of the agreement reached yesterday between Finland, Sweden and Turkey: it is a positive agreement for Finland, Sweden, Turkey and for all of us.” This was stated by NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg upon his arrival at a summit organized in the suburbs of Madrid.

He flies He said he would “not leave unanswered” the decision to deploy new US forces to Europe, including Italy. Then Moscow accused Norway of obstructing the crossing to the Svalbard Islands and threatened to retaliate against Oslo.

In the evening, Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned the “imperial ambitions” of NATOOr accusing the coalition of trying to assert its “superiority” through the conflict in Ukraine. “Ukraine and the well-being of the Ukrainian people are not the goal of the West and NATO, but a means of defending their interests,” Putin told reporters in the Turkmen capital Ashgabat. He added that “the leaders of NATO countries want to assert their superiority and imperial ambitions.”
but Russia “sees no problem” with Finland and Sweden eventually joining NatOr Putin said. “We have no problems with Sweden and Finland, as we have with Ukraine,” Putin said, explaining: “If Finland and Sweden want it, they will join. It’s their job, they can join whatever they want.”

Dragons: 8000 Italian soldiers ready if needed
“He took NATO command in Bulgaria and we are also assisting Romania. There have been air patrols of the Baltic states for several months. The number of forces in Bulgaria and Hungary is about 2,000, and 8,000 are stationed instead in Italy, ready if necessary.” Prime Minister Mario Draghi said this when talking about Italy’s role in NATO’s plan to strengthen the eastern flank. The new forces that the United States will deploy in Italy will be 70 soldiers and an air defense system. “The Defense Ministry has made it clear to me that this is an already planned settlement,” Draghi added, noting that he did not believe there was a “risk of escalation” with Russia.

Born, ‘Russia is the most important and direct threat’
The Russian Federation is the most important and direct threat to the security, peace and stability of the Allies in the Euro-Atlantic region. It seeks to establish spheres of influence and direct control through coercion, subversion, aggression and annexation. They use traditional means, information technology, and mixed means against us and our partners. It is the main passage of the Strategic Concept 2022 released by NATO at the Madrid Summit. Ukraine’s President Zelensky, via a video link, asked the Allies for “modern artillery and financial support” against Russia.

Russia and China reaction
Western arms supplies can threaten security not only in Ukraine but beyond its borders. This was stated by a spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, citing TASS.
The “further enlargement of NATO,” with the entry of Sweden and Finland, is a “destabilizing” move, “that will not bring more security to the members of the alliance themselves.” This was stated by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, citing the Interfax agency.

China is attacking the G7, accusing it of having “again used the summit statement to promote the narrative of ‘democracy versus authoritarianism’ and to seriously interfere” in its internal affairs, attacking and discrediting China and inciting conflicting sentiments. All this, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian noted, “The G7 has no intention of conducting dialogue and cooperation on the basis of equality and respect, but instead adheres to the Cold War mentality and ideological bias and engages in policies related to the interests of small circles. “.

NATO “continued to enter the Asia-Pacific region: some member states sent aircraft and warships into the waters around China for military exercises, which created tensions.” Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian complained that NATO continues to “support collective confrontation and the international community must maintain a high degree of vigilance,” commenting on remarks by US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, according to which the strategic document was approved in Madrid. The alliance summit will clearly indicate the multiple challenges posed by China.