Russia’s former president Dmitry Medvedev claimed the threat of war between Finland and Russia is growing, accusing Helsinki of building a bridgehead for an attack on Russia.
Medvedev, now deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, made the allegation in a column published September 8 by the Russian news agency TASS.
He said military activity intensified after Finland joined the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO).
Medvedev claims the alliance is “fully involved in these affairs and is now intensively mastering all five operational domains of Suomi (Finland—ed.): land, sea, air, space and cyberspace.”
According to Medvedev, NATO land forces staff structures are forming on Finnish territory close to the Russian border, particularly in Lapland. He also said a corps-level land component command of NATO’s armed forces is being deployed in the city of Mikkeli.
“New garrisons are appearing, for example in the settlement of Ivalo, located 40 km from Russian territory,” Medvedev added.
On September 1, Medvedev threatened violence against French President Emmanuel Macron and Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who are trying to stop the war in Ukraine.
On September 4, Medvedev threatened to occupy new territories of Ukraine after the United Kingdom sent Kyiv $1.3 billion in profits derived from frozen Russian assets.
