WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Committee, today issued the following statement in response to Finland joining the NATO alliance.

“Finland joining NATO is cause for celebration. Finland’s membership sends a strong message to President Putin that his brutal and unjustified invasion of Ukraine has strengthened the alliance that he sought to weaken. Finland formally joining the world’s largest military alliance on the 74th anniversary of its founding is further proof that the rules-based international order that the United States and the alliance have sought to uphold will endure. I congratulate President Niinistö on Finland’s membership in NATO and look forward to Sweden’s swift inclusion, which will further fortify transatlantic security.” 

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