Dmitry Medvedev, the former Russian president, said on Thursday that it would be impossible for the Baltic region to remain “non-nuclear” if Sweden and Finland joined the Nato alliance.
“If Sweden and Finland join Nato, the length of the alliance’s land borders with Russia will more than double,” Medvedev, now deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, wrote on his personal channel on the Telegram messaging app. “Naturally, these borders will have to be strengthened.”
“If this is done, no non-nuclear status of the Baltic will be possible,” Medvedev said. “The balance must be restored.” The people of Sweden and Finland, he added, would end up with nuclear-armed Russian ships “at arm’s length” from their homes.