President Joe Biden concluded his five-day European tour in Finland, where he declared that Russian President Vladimir Putin has already lost the war in Ukraine. He also expressed his commitment to pursuing a prisoner exchange for Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has been detained in Russia for more than 100 days. Biden also celebrated Finland's new membership and Sweden's likely ascension into NATO.
Posts tagged as “Helsinki”
President Joe Biden is in Europe this week for the NATO summit in Lithuania, and has already held a meeting with U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The U.S. and its NATO allies are looking to maintain a unified voice in support of Ukraine, and Biden will also meet with King Charles III to discuss the war and revise plans for dealing with Russian aggression. The trip will conclude in Helsinki, Finland, where Biden will celebrate the expanding alliance with Finland as the newest member of NATO.
Turkey's Parliament has voted unanimously to ratify Finland's application to join NATO, ending months of delays and paving the way for Finland to become the 30th member of the Western military alliance. The decision follows Hungary's parliament endorsing Helsinki's accession earlier this week, and is in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine a year ago. Finnish President Sauli Niinisto said the vote marks a “historic moment” for Finland, and the country is now ready to join NATO.