OREANDA-NEWS. Russia is imposing retaliatory sanctions on those states that have taken unfriendly steps against Moscow, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin said. In an interview with the Izvestia newspaper, he also added that the restrictions are not related to whether certain countries are members of NATO or not - answering the question of whether Finland is waiting for Russian sanctions if it joins the alliance.

“There is already a regime against Finland in relation to countries that have committed unfriendly actions, these are all EU members. Finland joined the EU sanctions packages, therefore, countermeasures were introduced against it, as against other countries. Countermeasures are not against NATO countries, they are against those countries that have taken unfriendly actions, whether they are NATO members or non-NATO members,” Pankin said.

As the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry noted, Moscow imposed sanctions on Tokyo and Canberra, although Japan and Australia are not members of NATO. At the same time, Pankin did not answer the question of what measures of a “military-technical nature” the Russian Federation could introduce against Finland if it joins the alliance.

Earlier it was reported that Finland wants to apply for NATO membership in mid-May.