The first joint exercises of the coastal fleet of Finland and NATO ships took place in the Gulf of Finland near Russia, writes Yle.

German and Portuguese frigates of the NATO Naval Rapid Reaction Force moored in Helsinki after joint exercises with Finnish sailors.

FGS Mecklenburg-Vorpommernilla weighs about 3600 tons. The almost 140-meter ship has 193 crew members and 26 officers..

NRP Bartolomeu Dias weighs about 3200 tons and is just over 120 meters long. The ship has 174 crew members..

The frigates, which are part of the NATO Maritime Rapid Response Force, are armed with a bow gun, naval and anti-aircraft missiles, carry a helicopter and an anti-submarine system.

“We are perhaps the first branch of the defense forces to host a visit as a NATO member state. It is a great honor for us,” commented the Chief of Staff of the Finnish Coastal Navy, Commander Jan-Erik Aitos.

[see_also ids\u003d"

Finland officially became the 31st member of the North Atlantic Alliance on April 4.

At the same time, Hungary and Turkey are still blocking Sweden's accession to NATO.. Ankara reproaches Stockholm for harboring members of organizations banned in Turkey, which they call terrorist, and Budapest does not want to ratify the application because of the criticism against him, which is often heard from the lips of Swedish politicians in the European Parliament.