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NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday that Finland will become the 31st member of the world鈥檚 biggest military alliance on Tuesday, prompting a warning from Russia that it would bolster its defenses near their joint border if NATO deploys any troops in its new member.

鈥淭his is a historic week,鈥� Mr. Stoltenberg told reporters on the eve of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels. 鈥淔rom tomorrow, Finland will be a full member of the alliance.鈥� He said that he hopes Sweden will be able to join NATO in the coming months.

The former Norwegian prime minister said on Tuesday afternoon, 鈥渨e will raise the Finnish flag for the first time here at the NATO headquarters. It will be a good day for Finland鈥檚 security, for Nordic security, and for NATO as a whole.鈥�

Mr. Stoltenberg said that Turkey, the last country to have ratified Finland鈥檚 membership, will hand its official texts to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday. Mr. Stoltenberg said he would then invite Finland to do the same.

Finnish President Sauli Niinist枚 and Defense Minister Antti Kaikkonen will attend the ceremony, along with Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto.

鈥淚t is a historic moment for us. For Finland, the most important objective at the meeting will be to emphasize NATO鈥檚 support to Ukraine as Russia continues its illegal aggression,鈥� Mr. Haavisto said in a statement. 鈥淲e seek to promote stability and security throughout the Euro-Atlantic region.鈥�

Russia鈥檚 Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said that Moscow would respond to Finland becoming NATO鈥檚 member by bolstering its defenses if needed.

鈥淲e will strengthen our military potential in the west and in the northwest,鈥� Mr. Grushko said in remarks carried by the state RIA Novosti news agency. 鈥淚n case of deployment of forces of other NATO members on the territory of Finland, we will take additional steps to ensure Russia鈥檚 military security.鈥�

The announcement of Finland鈥檚 entry comes just after Finnish voters gave a boost to conservative parties in a weekend election, depriving left-wing Prime Minister Sanna Marin of another term. Ms. Marin had championed her country鈥檚 NATO accession.

Fearing that they might be targeted after Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago, the Nordic neighbors Finland and Sweden abandoned their traditional positions of military non-alignment to seek protection under NATO鈥檚 security umbrella.

All 30 allies signed Finland鈥檚 and Sweden鈥檚 accession protocols. Turkey and Hungary delayed the process for months but have relented on Finland. Turkey has sought guarantees and assurances from the two, notably on tackling extremism. Hungary鈥檚 demands have never been explicit.

NATO must agree unanimously for new members to join. NATO officials are also keen to bring Sweden within the fold before U.S. President Joe Biden and his alliance counterparts meet in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius on July 11-12.

鈥淪weden is not left alone. Sweden is as close as it can come as a full-fledged member,鈥� Mr. Stoltenberg said.

This story was reported by the Associated Press.