Russia has warned Finland and Sweden against joining Nato, claiming that doing so will jeopardise European stability.

“The alliance remains a mechanism geared toward confrontation,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

It comes as US defence officials described Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine as a “major strategic miscalculation” that will almost certainly lead to Nato membership.

Officials in the United States expect the Nordic neighbours to apply for membership in the alliance as soon as June.

The idea, which would bring the Western alliance to 32 members, is thought to have Washington’s approval.

Last week, US State Department sources claimed that meetings between Nato leaders and foreign ministers from Helsinki and Stockholm had taken place.

Russia requested that the alliance agree to stop any future enlargement before it launched its invasion, but the war has resulted in the deployment of more Nato soldiers on its eastern flank and a boost in popular support for Swedish and Finnish membership.

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