By Riffat Kausar
Scandinavian News Agency
Finland
HELSINKI — Former Finnish President Sauli Niinistö has unveiled a series of tense and symbolic encounters with Russian President Vladimir Putin in his new memoir “All Roads to Safety,” offering a rare glimpse into Moscow’s diplomatic tone toward Finland before and after its NATO accession.
Niinistö, who served as Finland’s president from 2012 to 2024, recounted how Putin often made veiled references to Finland’s independence. At the 2012 St. Petersburg Economic Forum, Putin reportedly joked that “many things were better back then,” while serving guests a rare 1845 vintage wine — a period when Finland was still part of the Russian Empire.
The memoir also highlights the eerie symbolism behind Putin’s gifts. On one occasion, he presented Niinistö with a medal linked to a Finnish critic of Tsarist Russification, and on his 70th birthday, a collection of wartime letters from Marshal Mannerheim, Finland’s leader during the 1939 Winter War — a gesture Niinistö interpreted as an implicit warning.
During their 2022 phone call, when Finland formally announced its intention to join NATO, Putin allegedly told Niinistö that the move would be “a mistake with long-term consequences.”
The memoir underscores the delicate balance Finland maintained for decades between Moscow and the West — a balance that ended with its historic NATO membership in 2023.
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