Finnish President Sauli Niinistö informed Russian President Vladimir Putin during a phone call that his country intends to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and will make its decision in the coming days.

According to a statement issued by the Finnish presidential press office today, Saturday: "President Niinistö informed President Putin about the drastic change in Finland's security situation... and that Finland will make a decision in the coming days to obtain NATO membership."

According to the statement, the Finnish president referred to what he had told the Russian president during their first meeting in 2012, where he considered that every independent country is responsible for its own security.

The statement added: "This is exactly what is happening now. By joining NATO, Finland strengthens its security and takes responsibility."

The Kremlin confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed over the phone with his Finnish counterpart Sauli Niinistö Helsinki government's plans to approach NATO with a request for membership.

The Russian presidency stated in a statement that during the call which took place today, Saturday, at the request of the Finnish side, "they exchanged candid views on Finland's leadership announcing its intention to submit an application to join NATO."

Putin emphasized, according to the statement, that "Finland’s abandonment of a policy of military neutrality would be wrong because there are no risks to its security," and warned that this change in Helsinki’s foreign approach "could negatively affect the mutually beneficial Russian-Finnish relations that have been built over many years in the spirit of good neighborliness, cooperation, and partnership."