Finland has reportedly allocated funds to plan a railway link designed to facilitate the transport of NATO equipment from Sweden and Norway.
Finland has reportedly allocated €20 million to plan a new railway line connecting it with Sweden and Norway. According to Iltalehti, this line would facilitate the movement of NATO military equipment if war were to break out.
Finland abandoned its long-held neutral stance and joined NATO in April 2023, citing security concerns related to the Ukraine conflict. Sweden followed suit in 2024 for similar reasons. In response, Moscow pledged to strengthen its defenses in northwestern Russia.
Iltalehti, citing unnamed government sources, reported on Wednesday that the rail project is moving forward now that the Finnish government has committed funds for planning. The total cost of the project is expected to be in the billions of euros, with construction potentially beginning in the 2030s.
The article also stated that the Finnish government hopes to obtain funding from the European Union for the project.
Finnish Minister of Transport and Communications Lulu Ranne, in an interview with Iltalehti in November, cited a perceived Russian threat as the reason for the railway project.
“Tanks and cannons must be able to be moved in any situation,” she stated.
According to a recent NATO policy update, the alliance is “continuing to integrate [its] newest members – Finland and Sweden – into plans, forces, and command structures, including by developing a presence in Finland.”
Earlier this week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow is taking “measures to improve its security that our military deems necessary” due to NATO military infrastructure “gradually appearing on Finnish territory” in recent years.
Speaking to the French weekly Le Point, he stressed that Russia never had “any problems” with Finland or Sweden joining NATO and has no intention of attacking them.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has dismissed claims that Moscow has any aggressive intentions toward NATO countries, calling them “nonsense” intended to scare Western Europeans and justify large increases in defense spending.
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