As Putin's Ukraine War Rages, Finland Inches Closer To Joining NATO Amid Sweden's Turkish Hurdle

The Finnish Parliament on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed all the legislation necessary for joining NATO amid growing security fears as Vladimir Putin‘s invasion of Ukraine intensifies.

What Happened: Out of Finland's 200-member Parliament, 184 voted in favor of the Nordic nation joining NATO, subject only to the ratification of its bid by the Parliaments of Turkey and Hungary, reported the New York Times.

See Also: Vladimir Putin Condemns NATO's ‘Imperial Ambitions' As Finland, Sweden Fast-Track Membership

While Finland had pledged alongside its neighbor Sweden to enter the alliance "hand in hand," Stockholm's application has been held up by Turkey. Ankara has repeatedly indicated that it may split the applications arguing that Sweden needs to do more to satisfy its demands for a tougher stance against terrorism. 

Now that Turkey and Hungary will approve Finland's application, as is expected, Helsinki will join NATO even without its neighbor.

Meanwhile, Finland, which shares the longest E.U. border with Moscow, at 1,340 K.M., has recently started building a 200-kilometer fence on the Russian border amid fears that Moscow could use mass migration to exert political pressure on it. 

There has been a steep rise in Russians seeking to escape conscription to fight in Ukraine after Putin announced partial mobilization last year.

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