Pres, PM: Finland Should Join NATO 'Without Delay'

Finnish President Sauli Niinisto and Prime Minister Sanna Marin have issued a joint statement calling for their country to join the NATO alliance as soon as possible.

• The statement says that time has been provided for parties, parliament, and society to think on whether Finland should pursue NATO membership.
• "Now that the moment of decision-making is near, we state our equal views [...] NATO membership would strengthen Finland's security. As a member of NATO, Finland would strengthen the entire defence alliance. Finland must apply for NATO membership without delay. We hope that the national steps still needed to make this decision will be taken rapidly within the next few days."
• Comes in the wake of UK PM Boris Johnson's visit to Finland and neighbouring Sweden yesterday. Stockholm is also expected to officially announce its intention to seek NATO membership in the coming days.
• In the event it does join the alliance, Finland would have the longest NATO border with Russia of any country by far. While the border region would likely become more heavily militarised, the umbrella protection of NATO (combined with the fact Finland has a relativley large and well-trained military) will likely dissuade any Russian aggression for now.