Finland’s reindeer struggle with climate change

Sweden and Finland have stayed outside of NATO due to their military nonalignment policy. That's been supported in the past by majorities of both Finns and Swedes. But the war in Ukraine has changed that.

The government must commit resources to fight the most pressing "danger" of climate change, former defense officials said in an open letter. "Australia has failed when it comes to climate threats," the letter read.

Finns are viewing their long border with Russia with new eyes, fearing Russia's Vladimir Putin is doing the same. DW visits the Vaalimaa checkpoint amid new geopolitical uncertainty.

Narendra Modi set lofty climate goals at the COP26 climate conference. But his government has also watered down India's environmental rules, used protected lands for industrial purposes and stifled environmentalists, including 23-year-old Disha Ravi. In 2019 she launched the Indian wing of Fridays For Future, the movement inspired by Greta Thunberg. She was also arrested in 2021 for sedition and conspiracy over a document connected to India's farmer protests. She joins us on Perspective.

Despite jitters over the Ukraine war in many countries and Finland's decision to seek NATO membership, tanks have not been sent to the Finnish border with Russia, despite a viral video suggesting just that. We also look at false claims surrounding a recent protest in Paris.

Finland will not be deterred by Russian threats from applying to join NATO, Finnish ex-Prime Minister Alexander Stubb says. He told DW that the country would be a major security asset for the alliance.

The move is a stark U-turn for the country, which held a more neutral stance on the alliance in the past. Sweden is expected to follow suit.

It never happened during the entire Cold War. But all these years later, Russia's border with NATO is about to double in size. Finland remains unmoved by threats out of the Kremlin over its bid to join the US-led alliance. The same goes for neighbouring Sweden, which is so concerned by Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine that it is ready to call time on two centuries of neutrality.

Australia is counting down to its next federal election on May 21. The environmental crisis is high on voters' minds and smaller parties and independents are gaining momentum by riding a wave of disillusionment over the conservative coalition's lack of climate action. With a hung parliament looking likely, these minor players could force the traditional parties to do more to tackle global warming. Climate change is an increasingly hot-button issue since the country's devastating bushfires of 2019-20. Our correspondents Richelle Harrison Plesse and Gregory Plesse report.

Two new prospective members of the 73-year-old NATO alliance have submitted their applications to join. Their bids, which come in light of Russia's aggression in Ukraine, have already faced resistance from Turkey.

Finland has formally announced its intent to join NATO, marking a monumental shift from a long-held position of military nonalignment. DW reports from the Russian-Finnish border on the dramatic turnaround in popular opinion following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Finland has formally announced its intent to join NATO, marking a monumental shift from a long-held position of military nonalignment. DW reports from the Russian-Finnish border on the dramatic turnaround in popular opinion following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.