OREANDA-NEWS In the event of a global conflict between NATO and Russia, the Finnish army will become Moscow's legitimate target. This was stated by military expert Alexei Leonkov, RIA Novosti reports.

It is clarified that the Russian Defense Ministry predicted Helsinki's build-up of military activity on the border and prepared in advance for such actions. "When Finland was just about to join NATO, Moscow began to work on strengthening the northern flank in the western direction. As a result, a new military district was created, several bases appeared," he noted.

According to the expert, sooner or later all Finnish military bases will become NATO, which probably will not please ordinary Finns. "Today, there are people in power in Helsinki who defend not their own, but American national interests," Leonkov concluded.

Earlier, the Society of Russian-speaking Residents in Finland demanded that the authorities name the exact criteria for opening the border with Russia. It is noted that the document with the corresponding request was sent to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the government and the parliament of the country.