"Russia is not the neighbor we thought it was," she said of Moscow's ongoing assault on Ukraine, calling it a "flagrant violation".

"In this new situation and changed security environment, we'll have to evaluate all means to guarantee the safety of Finland and Finns," Marin said. "We'll have to seriously mull over our own stance and approach to military alignment. We'll have to do this carefully but quickly, effectively during the course of this spring."

Days after these words which Moscow saw as highly provocative, Axios in a new report says Finland's ascendancy to the alliance appears "imminent". "Public support and political momentum for Finland joining NATO has reached an all-time high as a result of the war in Ukraine, raising the very real possibility that the alliance's borders with Russia could extend by more than 830 miles in a matter of months," the report says. It could be a mere weeks away.

Sweden is also mentioned in the report as being positioned to seek entry into NATO alongside Finland. This after NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg's open invitation this week. He suggested both Nordic countries would be fast tracked. He remarked this week that he expects "all 30 allies to welcome" Finland and Sweden should they choose to apply.