Finland is 99.9 per cent likely to join Nato, a former prime minister of the country tells the BBC.
Alexander Stubb, who was PM from 2014-15, says the Finnish president will announce Finland's intention to join tomorrow, followed by an announcement from the government over the weekend, and a joint statement from Finland and Sweden early next week.
He says there is "overwhelming support" in Finland for joining the alliance, citing a poll from Tuesday which showed 76% in favour and 12 per cent against - a big swing from pre-invasion figures.
"The only person we can thank is Putin, he's the reason we're joining," he says.
He says Finland is "not at all" worried about Russia's threat of "a military-technical response" if it becomes a member.
"They've always been like that," he says, adding that when Iceland, Denmark and Norway joined in 1949 "the rhetoric was similar".
He warns, however, that during the "grey zone" of the membership application process - until Nato security guarantees come into effect - there may be Russian intimidation, cyber attacks and disinformation.
But he says Finland, and Sweden have some of the largest armies in Europe, and that their leaders have been collecting security assurances from the US, UK, Germany and France.
"We feel very safe in this situation, not really worried about it at all," he says.
