Sweden is now a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization after nearly two years of negotiations.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson is in Washington, D.C. and will attend President Joe Biden’s State of the Union Address.
“When Putin launched his brutal war of aggression against the people of Ukraine, he thought he could weaken Europe and divide NATO,” said Biden in a statement on March 7. “Instead, in May 2022, Sweden and Finland—two of our close partners, with two highly capable militaries—made the historic decision to apply for full NATO membership.”
“Today, we once more reaffirm that our shared democratic values—and our willingness to stand up for them—is what makes NATO the greatest military alliance in the history of the world. It is what draws nations to our cause,” he continued. “It is what underpins our unity. And together with our newest Ally Sweden—NATO will continue to stand for freedom and democracy for generations to come.”
The Scandinavian nation is the 32nd member of the alliance and all other members are now obligated to come to its defense if the nation is attacked. Finland was admitted on April 4, 2022 – more than doubling NATO’s border with Russia. Hungary was the last member to sign off on Sweden’s admission.
“Some observers attributed the delay to Hungary’s nationalist prime minister, Viktor Orbán, who has close ties to Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin. Others think it had more to do with Orbán’s desire to flaunt Hungary’s military and economic leverage, especially to a domestic audience,” reports The Guardian.
Sweden began the application process on May 17, 2022 – signaling the end of its 200-year-old nonalignment policy.
"It’s a victory for freedom today,” Prime Minster Kristersson said, according to POLITICO. “Sweden is … leaving 200 years of neutrality and military nonalignment behind. It is a major step, but at the same time, a very natural step."
With Sweden’s admission, NATO now has increased influence over the Baltic Sea.
"This is a historic moment for Sweden. It's historic for alliance. It's history for the transatlantic relationship," said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his remarks at the accession ceremony on March 7.
“Before Putin’s re-invasion of Ukraine in February of 2022, if you looked at the polling, less than one-third of Swedes supported joining NATO,” he continued. “After the invasion, three-quarters of the Swedish people made clear their desire to join. Swedes realized something very profound: that if Putin was willing to try to erase one neighbor from the map, then he might well not stop there.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sweden was now "more protected from Russian evil,” per DW. Ukraine has applied to join NATO but a date for its admission has not been established.
NATO members are scheduled to assemble for the organization’s 75th summit this summer in Washington, D.C.
