Russia planned to prevent Finland and Sweden from joining NATO
Russia planned to disrupt Finland and Sweden's accession to NATO by organizing, among other things, demonstrations and protests.
This became known from a secret intelligence report that was obtained by the investigative journalism department of the Finnish broadcaster Yle MOT.
According to the information received, Russian intelligence was preparing to conduct a campaign to destabilize the process of the two states' accession to NATO before the countries receive approval for membership in the Alliance.
The campaign included, among other things, the organization of protests and demonstrations.
The plan became known from a memorandum drawn up by a Russian intelligence officer. The document was leaked to the Dossier Investigative Journalism Center.
The document states that the strong protests in Sweden after the burning of the Quran have increased the fear of Islam in the EU. The document called for further escalation of these tensions.
The goal was also to increase misunderstandings between Turkey, as well as European countries, and NATO.
Author - Olena Madiak, 04/12/2023
