Earlier quoted context omitted.
Imagine joining a defense union when your neighbor declares war on another neighbor. The audacity!
[flagged]
The Finnish people seem to disagree with your assessment. This was not a decision made on a whim
Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
111–120 of 521 posts
Re: Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
#112Earlier quoted context omitted.
Mind to expand on „retaking its Baltic states“? I'd rather say a big portion of nowadays so-called „Russian federation“ is rightful territory of Baltic states, Poland and Finland.
Neither Finland or Poland are considered Baltic states in the normal sense of the words.
That's why I said „Baltic states, Poland and Finland“. As in, Baltic states + Poland + Finland.
Although historically Finland was considered one of 4 Baltic states. The 4 states that escaped Russian empire after WW1. It shrunk to 3 after WW2 and (re-)occupation of 3 of 4 of them.
Re: Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
#113Re: Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
#114[flagged]
China and Russia have terminal age demographics and HATE each other, Brazil helps define "middle income trap" for nations, South Africa is small, Saudi Arabia and Iran HATE each other, Argentina is the posterchild for rampant inflation, and India can't compensate for all of this.
Never mind that none of these nations, particularly the export-driven ones, can long survive economically without access to Western markets.
They're welcome to try and form a poorer, less coordinated market of antagonistic lesser economies who's sole defining feature is "we aren't competent or unified enough to compete with the West and that threatens our generally corrupt and authoritarian political classes!" If there's any shitshow it'll be watching it tear itself apart, presumably after Ray Dalio writes a best-selling book about how the decadent West is in decline and BRICS is inevitably the future.
Re: Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
#115Earlier quoted context omitted.
Mind to expand on „retaking its Baltic states“? I'd rather say a big portion of nowadays so-called „Russian federation“ is rightful territory of Baltic states, Poland and Finland.
Neither Finland or Poland are considered Baltic states in the normal sense of the words.
Your parsing it all wrong. Russia has land that rightfully belongs to Poland, Finland - and - the Baltic states.
Re: Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
#116Earlier quoted context omitted.
[flagged]
> Hence there is a backdoor deal between both faction to let the war progress at a very slow pace. And your source is?
It's a funny jump of logic a lot of people make. Sometimes people profit off of war, therefore all wars are secretly arranged by a cabal of war profiteers in back room deals. There's lots of variations but there's often a core true statement that is then used to leap to wild theories without any evidence.
Re: Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
#117[flagged]
> the BRICS surpassed the G7 in terms of GDP and more countries are seeking to join. Is "the BRICS" something besides a joint meeting that happens every now and then? What's the point in joining a joint meeting that happens every now and then?
Yes, members are collaborating closer with each other and also members are a part of BRICS Development Bank which is basically a international bank for all members. I guess you could consider BRICS the closest thing to a rival of G7, but that's of course a simplification, the structures are different.
Re: Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
#118Re: Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
#119Finland got de-Finlandized at last. Which is what the expansion of NATO was always about. NATO isn't a threat to Russia itself - if Russia seriously feared NATO aggression, it wouldn't voluntarily demilitarize its NATO borders during the past 13 months. NATO expansion just neutralizes Russian ability to force its will upon its neighbors through threat of aggression (or in case like Ukraine through the use of aggressi…
[flagged]
> Wouldn't it be smarter to actually listen to what Russia is trying to say?
No. Nobody should care what Russia has to say about another country voluntarily wanting to (and joining) NATO
> the irony is that the expansion of NATO gives the US ability to force its will upon NATO members and its neighbors
All NATO members joined voluntarily. None of your business.
> the ambitions are not different from the ambitions of Russia.
I won’t even attempt to refute this.
Re: Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO
#120Earlier quoted context omitted.
Russia literally invaded Finland last century
I don't think you can count "non-NATO" when NATO did not exist yet.
The point is that Finland matters a lot to Russia. The border with Finland is huge, geographically hard to defend, and right next to Russia's capitol. Finland's maritime zones join with existing NATO states to block Russia from operating in much of the Baltic (a process that would be completed when Sweden joins). Finland joining NATO is more than a shrug for Russia.