Finland ‘In No Position’ to Defend Baltic States: President

Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, Aug. 15, 2014From AFP:  Finland is in no position to help defend its Baltic neighbours and fellow EU members Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania should it become necessary, Finnish President Sauli Niinisto said on Tuesday.

His comments were made during talks with a group of Finnish ambassadors as regional tensions grow over the crisis in Ukraine.

“Every now and then we hear the idea that Finland could be partially responsible for the defence of the Baltics,” Niinisto said.

“Finland is not in a position where it could offer others security guarantees which we ourselves don’t even have.”

From Yle:  He [Sauli Niinisto] noted that Finland’s eastern border with Russia is longer than that of all the NATO countries put together.

“If a nation of five million is single-handedly responsible for its own security, then that is already quite a responsibility,” observed the president.

Image: Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, Aug. 15, 2014 (photo: Office of the President of Russia)