The pace of NATO expansion has not stopped, and recently, the Turkish parliament unanimously approved Finland's application for membership, which is an important milestone in NATO's eastward expansion. Finland passed a resolution of the national parliament as early as April 2022 to join NATO, but it was not ratified due to obstruction by Hungary and Turkey, and it was not until this year that these two countries finally agreed to Finland's accession. In this way, the four Nordic countries (Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark) all became part of NATO, and they planned to create a joint air force to counter Russian influence.
The incident has raised questions about Russia's relations with its neighbors. Why have all the old friends turned their backs on Russia and chosen to form an alliance with Western countries?One reason is the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has greatly damaged Russia's image in the international community and made neighboring countries feel threatened. In order to maintain its territorial sovereignty and use force, Russia did not hesitate to use force to occupy some areas of Ukraine, but it was not recognized by the international community, and could only rely on itself to organize a referendum in an attempt to win the hearts and minds of the people. Russia's approach has made many countries feel uneasy, fearing that they will be treated similarly, so they have chosen to join NATO and seek protection and support from Western countries.
Another reason is the strategic pressure of NATO, which, after two eastward expansions in 1999 and 2004, has already encircled Russia in a circle, and the countries of the Baltic and Eastern Europe, with the exception of Belarus, have almost all joined NATO, forming a powerful military alliance to confront Russia. Ukraine is Russia's southern barrier, and if Ukraine also joins NATO, then Russia will face an even greater crisis, and the US and NATO missile bases will be closer to Moscow. This is one of the reasons why Russia is sending troops to Ukraine, it wants to prevent Ukraine from joining and maintain its strategic advantage.
However, this approach of Russia has also put it in a dilemma, and Finland's accession is an example. Finland and Russia have a 1,300-kilometer-long border, and there have been many territorial disputes in history. Now that Finland has joined NATO, NATO's influence has extended to Finland's borders, posing an even greater threat to Russia, which feels an unprecedented sense of insecurity. If Russia does the same against Finland, then it is tantamount to a war against NATO, and if Russia does not act, then it appears that it has double standards, which is not the same for Ukraine and Finland.
The Russian-Ukrainian war has been going on for more than a year, Western countries have been constantly assisting Ukraine, and the United States has actively intervened, taking out almost all the **, only the nuclear warhead, their purpose is obvious, that is, they want to drag Russia into the quagmire of war and consume its national strength. Although Russia has nuclear **, it does not dare to use it lightly, because it knows that once it is used, it will trigger a global catastrophe and will be condemned and sanctioned by the whole world. Russia is in a state of passivity and isolation in this war, and it needs to find new allies and ways out in order to break the encirclement and pressure of Western countries and establish a new world order, a more just and equitable world order.