Putin's NATO warning was "game changer" for Finland–President

Finland's president has said that a NATO warning made by Russian President Vladimir Putin was a "game changer" that led the country to pursue membership of the alliance.

In a Fox News interview aired on Sunday, President Sauli Niinistö told anchor Shannon Bream that Putin's warning against other nations joining NATO had the opposite effect.

While both Finland and Sweden have applied for NATO membership following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, their ascension to the alliance has stalled in Hungary and Turkey.