President of Finland urges NATO to prepare for possible conflict with Russia

Finland’s new president has warned other Nato leaders to be less “belligerent” in their rhetoric against Russia and instead prepare their armies for a potential conflict, Report informs referring to the Financial Times.

Alexander Stubb told the Financial Times that recent public warnings of Russian aggression beyond Ukraine were diverting from what European countries should really focus on: helping Kyiv immediately and readying their militaries — even as he did not believe Moscow would attack a Nato country before 2030.

“I’m a little bit worried about this rather belligerent talk about Russia going to test Article 5 [Nato’s collective defense clause], and that Europe is next in line. I think we should prepare for that, but I think it’s highly unlikely,” Stubb, who took office last month, said in his first international newspaper interview. “What I call on all European states to do is to become more Finnish. In other words, more prepared. You have to prepare for the worst in order to avoid it,” he added.