NATO's newest members with former President of Finland Sauli Niinistö

NATO Through Time

What is the difference between NATO members and partners?
Why did Finland and Sweden set aside decades of neutrality and apply for NATO membership in 2022?
What can Finland’s experience living next-door to Russia, and its 900,000-strong reserve forces, teach the rest of the Alliance?
In this episode, Sauli Niinistö, who served as President of Finland from 2012 to 2024, talks about Finland’s experience of military non-alignment for more than seven decades, including almost 30 years of NATO partnership. He walks listeners through Finland’s decision to apply for NATO membership alongside Sweden in 2022, and the process of transitioning from NATO partner to NATO member. He also speaks about his role as a Special Adviser to the European Union on strengthening Europe’s civil and military preparedness and readiness, and what Europe needs to do to boost its resilience against growing hybrid threats.

Luvut

1. Introduction (00:00:00)

2. Early years and perception of NATO in Finland (00:01:53)

3. Cold War days and "Finlandisation" (00:06:28)

4. Armed neutrality in Finland (00:10:21)

5. End of the Cold War (00:14:55)

6. Building a bridge between NATO and Russia (00:17:17)

7. Why did Finland become a NATO partner? (00:19:07)

8. From partner to member (00:24:35)

9. A smooth road to accession? (00:29:41)

10. How things have evolved since Finland joined NATO (00:34:54)

11. Security and resilience in the EU (00:37:41)

12. Outro + reflections (00:41:08)