Finland becomes 31st member of NATO

Finland on Tuesday became the 31st member of North Atlantic Treaty Organization, wrapping up its historic strategic shift with the deposit of its accession documents to the alliance.

“With receipt of this instrument of accession, we can now declare that Finland is the 31st member of the North Atlantic Treaty,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the official keeper of the treaty, said.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated Finland on joining NATO, hailing the military alliance as the “only effective guarantee of security in the region” in the face of Russian “aggression”.

“My sincere congratulations to Finland and President Sauli Niinisto on joining NATO on the 74th anniversary of its founding,”Zelensky said on social media.