Just four months ago, the idea of Finland joining Nato this year would have seemed far-fetched. Now, the prospect of Russia’s once-neutral neighbour applying to become a member of the western military alliance seems all but inevitable.
Vladimir Putin’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, another non-Nato member that shares a border with Russia, has disrupted decades of security thinking in Helsinki, and for the first time led to a majority of Finns supporting Nato membership.
“All of a sudden, it seems the Finnish population have decided: there is only one option. It’s a radical change, a huge shift in momentum,” said Charly Salonius-Pasternak, leading researcher at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs.