Neutrality ends: Sweden to apply for NATO membership
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Loading... - Willow Morrison
- 17 May 2022
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Sweden's Social Democrat minority government has taken the formal decision to apply for NATO membership on Monday, following in the footsteps of its neighbor Finland in a move that will redraw the geopolitical map of northern Europe.
"There is a broad majority in Sweden's parliament for joining NATO," Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said following a debate on security policy in parliament. "The best thing for Sweden and the Swedish population is to join NATO."
The historic shift, which comes after more than 200 years of military nonalignment in the Nordic country, is likely to upset the government of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which it calls a "special operation," has highlighted Sweden and Finland's vulnerabilities despite their close cooperation with NATO in recent years.
"We will inform NATO that we want to become a member of the alliance," Andersson said.
The announcement came after a debate in the Riksdagen, Sweden's parliament, earlier Monday showed that there is huge support for joining NATO. Out of Sweden's eight parties, only two smaller left-leaning parties opposed it.
On Sunday, the Swedish Social Democrats broke with the party's long-standing position that Sweden must remain nonaligned, paving the way for a clear majority for NATO membership in the parliament.
The move in Sweden came after neighboring Finland announced Sunday that it too would seek to join the 30-country alliance. Public opinion in both countries was firmly against joining NATO before the Russian invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, but support for NATO membership surged quickly after that. Read More...
