ISW explains purpose behind Kremlin's regular threats against NATO countries

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) shared the information in its recent report.

The analysts recalled how the Russian Foreign Ministry threatened Finland that it would allegedly "lose its independence in making foreign policy decisions" after joining NATO. The report emphasizes that the Kremlin has regularly used this narrative to falsely claim that the Alliance controls Ukraine and uses it to threaten Russia.

ISW experts also drew attention to an interview given to Russian media by Russian Ambassador to Finland Pavel Kuznetsov. He said that the Scandinavian country is following a "destructive course" in its relations with Russia, and that the country's accession to the Alliance allegedly turns the Baltic region into a "zone of potential escalation."

Kuznetsov also claimed that Russia would be forced to respond to NATO's military buildup or alleged deployment of nuclear weapons in Finland, and that Russia's response would be "adequate, but not necessarily symmetrical."

In addition, the Russian ambassador said in an interview that by joining NATO, Helsinki joined the "party of war until victory over Russia," and accused Finnish "Russophobia" of leading to a complete break in Russian-Finnish relations.

The diplomat also hinted that Finland allegedly has no choice but to improve relations with Russia, as "we can't escape geography." At the same time, Kuznetsov unilaterally accused Helsinki of the poor state of Russian-Finnish relations despite the artificial migration crisis that Russia created on the Russian-Finnish border in the fall of 2023 and Russia's repeated threats against Finland and the wider NATO alliance.

"ISW continues to assess that Russian threats against NATO member states are aimed at leading the West to deter itself and that Russian claims of imagined threats originating from NATO are aimed at setting informational conditions to justify and support an envisioned long-term geopolitical confrontation with the West," the analysts emphasized.

• On April 4, 2023, Finland officially became the 31st member of the North Atlantic Alliance.
• Russian leader Vladimir Putin, in turn, said that after joining NATO, Finland might have problems with Russia. He also announced the establishment of the Leningrad Military District.