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What did Finland's NATO entry change by 5 April 2023?
Summary
A look back at the security picture around 5 April 2023, after Finland's accession and as Bakhmut remained contested.
What did the security map look like on 5 April 2023? Two developments from the preceding days framed it: Finland's entry into NATO and the continuing fight for Bakhmut.
On 4 April 2023, Finland officially joined NATO, becoming the alliance's 31st member. The step expanded NATO's border with Russia by 1,300 kilometres (810 miles).
A day earlier, on 3 April 2023, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner Group, claimed "legal control" of Bakhmut. Ukraine denied this. It stated that its troops continued to hold the western districts of the city.
By 5 April 2023, then, the two stories stood side by side. In the north, the alliance had formally grown by one member and extended its frontier with Russia. In the east, the battle of Bakhmut continued, with Russian-aligned and Ukrainian accounts of who held the city at odds.
