WASHINGTON โ Sweden officially became NATO’s 32nd member as the US received accession instruments Thursday.
It came almost two years after Sweden applied to join the military alliance following the start of the Russian war on Ukraine in February 2022.
โGood things come to those who wait,โ US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the State Department after receiving accession instruments. He was joined by Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom.
โThis is a historic moment for Sweden. This is historic for our alliance. It’s historic for the transatlantic relationship,โ said Blinken. โOur NATO alliance, or defensive alliance is now stronger and larger than it’s ever been.โ
He said โthere’s also no clearer example than today of the strategic debacleโ of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Kristersson said Sweden is leaving 200 years of neutrality and military non-alignment behind and called his countryโs ascension a โmajor step but at the same time a very natural step.โ
โThe security situation in our region has not been this serious since the Second World War,โ he said. โRussia will stay a serious threat to the Euro Atlantic security for the foreseeable future.โ
โIt was in this light Sweden applied to join NATO,โ he added.
Sweden and Finland applied for NATO membership in May 2022, abandoning their long-standing non-alignment policies, a decision spurred by Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Finland, which shares a 1,340-kilometer (832-mile) border with Russia, became a member of NATO on April 4, 2023, becoming the 31st member of NATO.
Sweden completed its membership procedures after Hungary became the last NATO member to ratify the country’s membership last week, and instruments of ratification were sent Thursday to Washington. Tรผrkiye approved Sweden’s NATO membership bid in January.
Swedenโs flag will be raised alongside the other 31 members in a ceremony Monday at NATO headquarters in Brussels to mark the accession. (Anadolu)
