Russia says nuclear facilities in Northern Europe will be 'legitimate targets'

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday that Northern European facilities housing American nuclear weapons would be considered legitimate military targets in a direct clash between the Russian Federation and NATO.

Commenting on Finland's President Alexander Stubb's remarks about the importance of having nuclear deterrence forces, Zakharova said at a news conference in Sochi that such objects would be a source of a direct threat to Russia.

"You don't need to be a military strategist to understand that such objects will pose a source of direct threat and will inevitably be included in the list of legitimate targets defined by the scenario of a direct military clash between our country and NATO," she stressed.

Contrary to Stubb's expectations, the spokeswoman said, the deployment of US nuclear weapons will worsen the security of host countries.

Zakharova wondered if Stubb asked the opinion of his voters on the issue and whether he himself realizes the risks of such a move.

"To what extent Finnish citizens are aware of the risks they will have to face is a big question. ... Because (such a decision) will really change a lot in the context of the security of this country and other issues relevant to this state," she said.

In May 2022, Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO, abandoning their long-standing policy of military neutrality, after Russia launched its "special military operation" in Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

Finland officially joined NATO on April 4, 2023. Initially, Hungary and Türkiye opposed Sweden's application due to existing counter-terrorism issues. However, in July 2023, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that the two countries had reached an agreement, and Ankara withdrew its objection.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Budapest would also not block Sweden's entry and would support its membership.

Sweden completed its membership procedures last month and is due to join officially.