In the ceremony at the Foreign Ministry in Washington, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson presented the accession documents to US chief diplomat Blinken. This means that Sweden is officially admitted to the North Atlantic Alliance. On Monday, in a symbolic act, the Swedish flag will be raised at NATO headquarters in Brussels alongside those of the other 31 member states.
Kristersson called his country’s accession to NATO a “victory for freedom.” In a televised address to the Swedish nation, he said: “We are a small country, but we understand the importance of the world beyond our borders.” Later in the day, Kristersson was scheduled to attend US President Biden’s annual address to the nation.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in Brussels that this was a “historic day” that would make the alliance stronger. Stoltenberg emphasized that Sweden now also enjoys full protection under Article Five of the NATO Treaty. Thereafter, an attack on one ally is considered an attack on all.
US President Biden emphasized that Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin wanted to divide NATO and weaken Europe by Russia attacking Ukraine. With Sweden’s accession, the military alliance is now “more united, more cohesive and more dynamic than ever.”
The Foreign Office also stated that NATO would be “stronger and our people would be safer” with Sweden. “We were rooting for you on the far too long journey to NATO,” said an article on
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed Sweden’s accession, saying: “Another country in Europe is now better protected from Russian evil.” British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called NATO “the most successful defense alliance in history.”
Under the impression of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, Sweden and Finland broke with their decades-long tradition of military non-alignment and applied to join NATO in May 2022. Since all NATO states had to agree to these requests, a stalemate developed.
Turkey and Hungary particularly objected to Sweden’s accession. Ankara accused Stockholm of having too lax immigration policy and protecting members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is banned in Turkey. Budapest accused Stockholm of “denigrating” Hungary, in response to Swedish criticism of restrictions on the rule of law in Hungary.
While Finland, which has a land border of around 1,300 kilometers with Russia, received the green light last year and was accepted into the alliance in April, Sweden had to wait much longer. The fact that the USA initiated the long-held delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey contributed to Ankara’s relent. The Hungarian resistance was overcome, among other things, by the Swedish Prime Minister Kristersson agreeing to increased military cooperation with Hungary during a visit to Budapest.
Although Sweden regularly sends soldiers to international peacekeeping missions, it has not experienced war since a conflict with Norway in 1814.
