German and Finnish presidents say Russian threats must be countered

Germany's president has praised Finland's entry into NATO as a boon for Europe's security amid Russian aggression in Ukraine and malicious cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns across the continent.

"It increases Finland's security, of course, but above all it also strengthens the eastern flank of NATO and thus increases the security of the entire alliance," German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said at a press conference with new Finnish President Alexander Stubb in Berlin on Wednesday.

Finland, which shares a 1,300-kilometre-long border with Russia, has been a member of the Western defence alliance since April last year. It had applied for NATO membership following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Europe is "under brutal attack," said Stubb alongside Steinmeier, referring to the war in Ukraine. "We must stand together and defend Europe together."

"The coming months are very important. We must stick together and remain strong in our support for the Ukrainians," he said.

Steinmeier and Stubb expressed their concern about cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns and other disruptive tactics from Russia.

"It goes without saying that we in Europe and within NATO must do much more to defend ourselves against such hybrid attacks," said Steinmeier.

Stubb called for considered action in the face of such hybrid warfare: "We must remain calm and then take the necessary measures to end this warfare."

France, Germany and other European countries have accused Russia of committing cyberattacks and other attempts at destabilizing their political and social situations. The German government recently blamed Russia for a hacker attack on Social Democratic Party email accounts in early 2023.