Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced to the ministry council on Wednesday that "Russia will mobilize its forces on its western borders following Finland's accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) led by the United States." In his opening remarks to the Ministry of Defense Council, he noted that "Poland, a NATO member, has already announced plans to strengthen its army, and it is expected that a large number of NATO forces and weapons will be deployed in Finland, which has nearly doubled the shared land border between Russia and NATO countries."
According to the ministry's announcement, Shoigu stated: "The West collectively is waging a proxy war against Russia," and highlighted "unprecedented support for Ukraine, providing it with weapons valued at tens of billions of dollars to assist Kyiv in repelling Russian forces." He described Finland's entry into NATO and Sweden's future accession as a "dangerous destabilizing factor," suggesting that "additional NATO military units and offensive weapons capable of hitting vital targets in Northwestern Russia at great depth are likely to be deployed on Finnish territory."
He added: "Today, we will discuss during the council meeting the matters related to establishing a military zone in both Leningrad and Moscow, in conjunction with strengthening the troop concentrations of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation on our western borders." Shoigu further noted that "Poland has declared its intention to build the strongest army on the continent and has become the main instrument of the U.S. anti-Russia policy," observing that "the number of NATO military units stationed outside Eastern Europe has increased two and a half times since February of last year, with a total of 30,000 soldiers currently deployed."
He warned of threats to Russian military security, stating: "They require an appropriately timed and natured response, and we will discuss the necessary measures to neutralize them during the meeting and make the appropriate decisions."
