From: Snapshot-Content-Location: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/04/dont-mention-article-5-finland-warns-us-on-ukraine-00766043 Subject: =?utf-8?Q?Don=E2=80=99t=20mention=20=E2=80=98Article=205,=E2=80=99=20Finl?= =?utf-8?Q?and=20warns=20US=20on=20Ukraine=20-=20POLITICO?= Date: Sun, 8 Feb 2026 13:22:06 -0800 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/related; type="text/html"; boundary="----MultipartBoundary--Xp13liJzdwafplv0zx327iuWKeJ1PljFy9OifvEzN3----" ------MultipartBoundary--Xp13liJzdwafplv0zx327iuWKeJ1PljFy9OifvEzN3---- Content-Type: text/html Content-ID: Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Location: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/04/dont-mention-article-5-finland-warns-us-on-ukraine-00766043 Don=E2=80=99t mention =E2=80=98Article 5,=E2=80=99 Finland warns US = on Ukraine - POLITICO= =
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Don=E2=80=99t mention =E2=80=98Article 5,=E2=80=99 Finland warns US on= Ukraine

Some NATO countries w= orry using any version of the term =E2=80=9CArticle 5=E2=80=9D for Ukraine = defense could weaken its deterrence.

3D"Finland's

Finland's Foreign Minister Eli= na Valtonen laid out her country's concerns about using the term "Article 5= -like" in reference to Ukraine during a meeting with American lawmakers. | = Michaela Stache/AFP via Getty Images

By Na= hal Toosi and Paul McLeary
  • =

    • Finland has urg= ed U.S. officials not to describe future security pledges to a postwar Ukra= ine as =E2=80=9CArticle 5-like,=E2=80=9D implying that doing so could under= cut the mutual defense clause at the heart of the NATO military alliance, a= ccording to a State Department cable obtained by POLITICO.

    =

    The Jan. 20 cable hints at worries in some corners over= the labels used during peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow. They show how = sensitive some phrases can be in the national security realm, even when off= icials are merely trying to offer an analogy to various audiences.

    According to the cable, sent from the= U.S. Embassy in Helsinki to Washington, Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Val= tonen discussed the issue on Jan. 19 with U.S. Reps. Jack Bergman (R-Mich.) and Sarah Elfreth (D-Md.), both of whom are memb= ers of the House Armed Services Committee.

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    Valtonen underscored Finland=E2=80=99s view that Russia is a =E2=80=9Clong= -term strategic threat=E2=80=9D and cautioned against a =E2=80=9Cweak=E2=80= =9D peace deal for Ukraine that would hinder its ability to defend itself a= gainst future Russian aggression, the cable states.

    =

    But Valtonen cautioned against any suggestions of =E2=80=9CArt= icle 5-like=E2=80=9D security guarantees in a postwar Ukraine, the cable ad= ds. She warned that it risked conflating NATO=E2=80=99s Article 5 guarantee= s with whatever bilateral promises are made to Ukraine. It also quotes her = as saying there should be a =E2=80=9Cfirewall=E2=80=9D between NATO and fut= ure security guarantees to Ukraine. Finland=E2=80=99s defense minister made= similar points in a later meeting, according to the cable.

    Article 5 is a critical clause in the NATO pact that means an arme= d attack on one member of the 32-member alliance will be treated as an atta= ck on all members. NATO has invoked the article only once: after Islamist t= errorists attacked the U.S. on Sept. 11, 2001.

    The documents=E2=80=99 contents offer insight into concerns voiced = by other Finnish leaders who have said that, while they want to help Ukrain= e protect itself, the concept of a security =E2=80=9Cguarantee=E2=80=9D is a= more serious matter they=E2=80=99re not ready to agree to just yet.<= !--[-->

    A Finnish official said Valtonen=E2=80=99= s office wouldn=E2=80=99t comment on confidential discussions, though under= scored Helsinki=E2=80=99s long-standing goal of eventually accepting Ukrain= e into the NATO alliance.

    =E2=80=9CFinl= and=E2=80=99s objective is to ensure that Ukraine receives the strongest po= ssible security arrangements and guarantees in support of a sustainable and= lasting peace,=E2=80=9D the official said, who was granted anonymity to sp= eak about sensitive policy matters. =E2=80=9CFinland=E2=80=99s position is = that Ukraine=E2=80=99s future lies within NATO.=E2=80=9D

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    Former NATO offi= cials and analysts said the cable reflects growing concerns in various capi= tals about how engaging with a postwar Ukraine could affect individual coun= tries in the long run.

    =

    One potential problem is that =E2=80=9Cusing the= term Article 5 in other contexts implies NATO involvement that is not in f= act a part of any of these proposed arrangements,=E2=80=9D said Edward Wron= g, a former NATO official. =E2=80=9CFinland and many other NATO members wan= t to ensure it is understood that Article 5 is unique to NATO.=E2=80=9D

    =

    The State Department declined to comment.

    <= !---->

    Elfreth, one of the U.S. law= makers Valtonen met with, did not address the session with the Finnish fore= ign minister directly, but said in a statement: =E2=80=9CFrom our many meet= ings, it was clear to me that our NATO allies, new and old, are committed t= o advancing shared goals of defending our partners from Russian and other a= dversarial influences.=E2=80=9D

    Bergman declined to comment.

    =

    Using= Article 5 as a parallel has multiple upsides and downsides, especially giv= en the range of attitudes toward Ukraine in NATO, the former officials and = analysts said. That=E2=80=99s further complicated by the likelihood that in= dividual countries, or select groups of countries =E2=80=94 but not NATO it= self =E2=80=94 will offer Ukraine security aid in the near future.

    One = challenge is that by referring to Article 5, even with the =E2=80=9Clike=E2= =80=9D attached to it, national leaders could hand political ammunition to = opposition groups, said Josh Shifrinson, a scholar with the University of M= aryland, College Park, who advocates for a more restrained foreign policy.<= /p>

    There=E2=80=99s also the possibility that framing a security pledge to = Ukraine as =E2=80=9CArticle 5-like=E2=80=9D will entice Russia to test what= that truly means.

    If Russia stages some sort of an armed attack and th= e countries backing Ukraine struggle to respond, that could raise questions= about the strength of NATO=E2=80=99s Article 5, said Rachel Ellehuus, a fo= rmer Biden administration Defense Department official assigned to NATO.

    =

    On top of that, other members of NATO, especially those in Europe, are acu= tely aware of President Donald Trump=E2=80=99s dim views of the alliance. T= hey are reacting to his demands that they step up defense spending and have= taken on the lion=E2=80=99s share of aid to Ukraine. Given economic uncert= ainties in the years ahead, just how much they can support Ukraine is in qu= estion.