time soon and it decided to let finland go ahead. as you say, nato and finland have been cooperating very closely for years. but this still is quite a watershed moment for finland. what will change for that country with this accession to nato? terry? there's something about finland that goes back to the 2nd world war when finland feels like it was left alone to fight against the soviet union and ended it one, had to give up a little territory. but the fins felt in the winter war that nobody came to save them, that even though countries promised to come, they didn't send assistance fast enough and, and they had to fight alone. that is the feeling. i can't tell you how strongly finns feel. they are still afraid of being left alone to fight their big neighbor. now with nato's article 5, covering them the promise that one for all and all for one, they feel like they would have help if, if the worst were to happen. if russia were to reinforce its military along the

finish border and dare to cross it, that's the biggest thing that will change because it's already well equipped and install ready defending that border itself. there it's a big border terry, a 1300 kilometers long uh, between finland and russia. it's defending that. of course, this is quite a task. russia has warned that nato troops deploying in finland would be a big problem for them. do you think that's likely to happen in the near future, terry that we'll see nieto troops on russia's border in finland. i don't know if nato troops would be stationed along the border, but finish and nato troops have exercised together for years for decades. fin, linda and suite and both cooperate very closely with nato. so there have been nato troops inside finland and finish troops, exercising with nato troops. it's not known yet exactly how that, how any nato deployments inside finland would look. but even if that were the case,

russia is, is still quite unlikely to cross the border when again, you have that article 5 commitment backing finland up. it hasn't done so in the past. i mean, think about it. finland has been alone since the end of world war 2 in russia hasn't dared to invade it despite, you know, occasional threats to do so. but i think nonetheless, finland will feel much more secure. now, they know that russia doesn't have the military capacity to do this. at the moment because the military is deployed to fight ukraine, they, what they're worried about is what might happen after the end of the warren ukraine . now when finland filed to this application to join nato last may, it was, it did that together with sweden, but sweden is not joining nato today. what are the chances of sweden being getting into the alliance soon, terry? well, there's a lot of pressure on turkey not to keep sweden out of the alliance. the other allies are, are warning turkey and to be fair hungry,

which also hasn't ratified sweet. and yet that the alliance will be weakened as a whole. if you leave that gap there in the north, this is what sweden field, and this is what other allies are telling turkey. but you know, we really don't know if and when turkey is going to drop it's objections, because you have nato teeth. ians dalton berg and sweden and finland, vo saying, hey, we fulfilled all the promises we made to you at the madrid summit last july. let us in turkey has not signaled that it's willing to do that. there are elections coming up in turkey and, and it is believed that rhetoric tie a bear to one that the turkish president wants to use this issue to try to gain more votes. so it, after the turkish elections, thing things may shake loose a little bit for sweden. just want to remind her of yours that we are following live coverage from the nato headquarters in brussels. so we're going to get some live pictures from the ceremony itself, which is about to get underway for the raising of finland flag among the other together with the other 30 verse in nato. there is

a foreign ministers meeting happening right now also to day in brussels. i've seen a number of the foreign ministers in different nato countries already gathering there. we're going to continue following these pictures. meanwhile, terry, stay with us. we're, we're going to be coming back to you, of course, throughout this, what about? what about finland's path to nato accession, terry? this was, as we mentioned, not, not very easy. we've had some obstacles, both from hungary and from turkey. does finland from today on fully enjoy the protection of nato. terry from this moment they already do if there were something to happen right now. article 5 is in force for finland. so raising the flag is a ceremonial part. but when these documents were signed earlier today, handed over by finished foreign minister, peca harvey. so to tell us secretary of state, tony blinking, it was

a done deal. so finland right now does enjoy those protections. and to go back to an earlier point that you made, finland has also said that it is now its priority to get neighboring sweden into the elias. there were some hurt feelings i have to say from speaking to people behind the scenes when finland decided to go ahead. when turkey, when turkey, i decided that it would ratify finland separately from sweden. there were some in sweden that said that the lynch and wait for it. other said, you know what is better to have finland inside. even if, even if o that means sweden has to wait. everyone believes here at nato headquarters that sweden will be safer now with finland inside the alliance. so that's something important. sweden is surrounded on on all sides now by nato members and need a wants that finland sweden to feel reassured. but again, there is lingering regret that sweden's flag is not being raised behind me today as well. jen stoughton baccha earlier in a and he was speaking in a press conference at the beginning of all the ceremonies there. he said that

nothing should hinder ratification of sweden's accession to ne tone. now, so clearly there's quite a bit of pressure on both hungary and turkey to to ratify that accession. so you're looking at live pictures from nato headquarters and right there you can see the finished flag that's about to be raised together with the other flags of the nato member countries. the 30 other member countries of nato, a finland flag is going to go up. it would seem just between lithuania and french in front of the headquarters there. this is a historic day even without finland, joining native because the ceremony in brussels is falling on nature's very own birthday. the 74th anniversary of the signing of its founding washington treaty back in april. 4th 1949. give us a sense of the mood there. terry. at this, at this meeting at this ceremony for finland succession. well,

i can tell you from speaking with fins around here that they are almost giddy, especially by finish standards that this day has come again. the history of finland's relationship with nato is remarkable. a year and a half ago. 2 fins were still not in favor of joining nato, believing that non alignment was safer because it wouldn't bring russian threats of aggression and joining the alliance. the switch in public opinion to now more than 80 percent of fins having wanted to join nato is remarkable. i could not have imagined it having covered finland now for more than 30 years. this would, i was just not something that would have been on anybody's bingo card. i can tell you that. and even speaking with finished journalists here, they are surprised by this. so that the journey of finland to nato has been incredibly rapid. once russia invaded ukraine fins felt like there was no other way to be to be secure than to have these other 30 countries ready to come to its age.

if russia were to dare to across that border, russia has already made a statement. responding to this, we heard on on tuesday. oh, the kremlin saying that nato membership is quote, an assault on our security. that's a, that's from the kremlin spokesman dmitri pest call. terry. when nato, when russia says that it sees this move as an assault on its security and his national interest, can we expect m consequences counter measures because they did talk about counter measures. russia does not have the military capability at the moment to launch any sort of large scale assault on finland. this is something that military analysts in finland have now been saying since the start of the war and actually made them feel a bit safer. that, that the, the, i mean literally they tracked the tanks going away from the areas near their rush and finish. border headed toward ukraine. russian doesn't have an asset to put in

place to threaten finland territorially at this time. but you should also say that finland is used to being attacked in many different ways. constantly, not just since it is decided to join nato, a hybrid assaults on, on finland are, are ever present to russia is constantly trying to, trying to attack it with cyber attacks. it's, it launches disinformation campaigns. this is just a something that fins take as part of everyday life living as to the border and have built up their resilience against. and many other countries are learning from the finished programs that, for example, teach counter disinformation to school children as young as 8 or 9. so fins are used to these kind of threats. and again, they do not believe right now that russia has the capacity even if it wanted to launch a military assault against finland in the very near future. and once again, if the war in ukraine ends as every one hopes it will and russia were to re station assets near the russian border with finland. now nato's article 5 is there to help . we're seeing this also as part of the, of, of

a security architecture within europe with on, with finland succession didn't to native of course terry, we'd be a finland joined the european union just back in 1995. which really isn't that long ago. ah, this is all kind of part of, of your, of european integration process to some degree to day on a defense capacity. but what about the role of the united states in nato? terry, despite all of this european pulling together now with 31 members in nato, is the united states still not the principle guarantor of peace and security in europe. it is, it is, i mean, some countries would argue that a bit and say we got some strong european allies as well. but the united still states still does spend more of its g d, p on defense than any other country. it has the largest military of any other

country in nato, and it, it does still carry out the most weight, no matter what anyone else might say. and when it comes to the nordic membership, the united states has been, has been arguing for this. since the beginning and, and also continues to support sweden in its quest. so this is something that the united states has definitely sought, again, not being deterred by that 1300 kilometer border that finland has with russia. so the united states was among those countries who have long thought that that nato would be more secure if you have a really well trained military like finland on the inside. no one wanted this gap inside nato with strategically they thought that this gap in the nordic countries with finland and sweden outside of nato, was not good for the alliance. because then you could have brought a russian, russian sneak attack there in the baltic sea and, and the baltic states have long wanted finland and sweden. and they are as happy as the fins that this day has come. so i think that when you talk about about finland's now, northern side, the nordic nato, as it's been called one to have both finland and tyrann in. yeah, there's

a wall of defense. so we're just going to cut back over to the 2 brussels. now we're hearing young sheldon bag, the head of nato, giving a speech. gotcha. was listening marks trying to juggle a secretary general on our selected on this they on the 4th of april, mine's been for dinner him on this day of the 4th of april. mine's been 40 norion. the washington treaty was signed to crate, a shield against aggression on that fears, shielded our nation's honor genius to do so. to day but war has returned to europe and finland has decided to join nato. i'd be part of the world's most successful alliance.

this has been the fastest accession process in naples, small done history, finland and sweden applied for membership last may. in june out there was summit and madrid's every ally invited them to join him and to day less than a year later, we welcomed finland as a full member of our alliance. i look forward to also welcoming sweden into the lions as soon as possible. finan is safer, and nate, though is stronger with finland as an alloy. your forces are substantial and highly capable. your resilience is 2nd to none. and for many years, troops on finland and nato countries are worked side by side as partners. from to

day, we stand together as allies this sense a clear message that every nation has the right to choose his own paul. that natal store and base open, and no one can close it with force or coercion. they thought is a community united why our values, freedom, democracy, and the rule of law. we stand together, we protect and defend it, shoulder all for $1.00, and $1.00 for all president then minister. that is only i'm glad to be here to get there with you on this. great, they thank you for you out standing, leave the ship and your tireless work to make this they possible. i'm glad and i'm proud to be the secretary general,

that the wall comes filled on fully into the natal family. welcome to the lights through the president of finland will now deliver his address. meant not depending on that i found by the haunt, hooked up a hug. secretary turned around and stalked edburg. dear gents, ministers, excellency's, ladies and gentlemen. feel odd to her said today become the 31st, a member of nato. the era of a military non alignment in our history has gone to an end.