Any 'mischief' would include measures such as 'cyber attacks' rather than direct military attacks 'because the Russian armed forces are fully preoccupied in this dreadful invasion of Ukraine', Ms Gottemoeller said. DavidLammy | Gottemoeller
Former Deputy Secretary General of NATO Rose Gottemoeller tells LBC there will be "opportunities for Russian mischief-making" in the transition period as Finland, and potentially Sweden, await NATO membership.
Finland and Sweden's efforts to join the alliance were earlier stalled when Turkish President Erdogan said he could not support their entry bids due to Kurdish terrorist organisations operating in both countries. Speaking to David Lammy, Ms Gottemoeller said: "I was glad to see Boris Johnson step forward and provide that transitional kind of guarantee to Finland and Sweden, because the process [of joining NATO] can take a long time.
"Every single NATO member has to take the decision through its parliament... and these ratification processes can take some time."In the meantime, I do believe that Finland and Sweden will get a lot of support from across the alliance, but there will be some opportunities for Russian mischief-making in the transition period", Ms Gottemoeller continued.
Ms Gottemoeller said such mischief could include "hybrid actions, cyber attacks, that type of thing, rather than direct military arracks because the Russian armed forces are fully preoccupied in this dreadful invasion of Ukraine".Read more:
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