Sweden signals it will apply to join NATO in move that will infuriate Vladimir Putin
The latest move by the European state risks incurring the wrath of Vladimir Putin - but the country’s Prime Minister feels they have little choice.
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Sweden has given a strong hint that it will apply to join NATO in a move that risks incurring the wrath of Vladimir Putin.
Sources in the Swedish ruling party, SVD, say the country will seek to join the Western bloc - and Finland is on the cusp of holding its own vote on signing up to the trans-Atlantic alliance too.
Putin invaded Ukraine partly because of Kyiv’s intentions to join NATO, and Russia is not likely to look kindly on its Nordic neighbours trying to do the same.
Both Sweden and Finland have remained neutral in recent decades to avoid risking their relationship with Russia, but the invasion of Ukraine has caused the dynamic to shift.
Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin said Wednesday the country would decide on whether to apply for NATO membership “within weeks”.
“I think it will happen quite fast. Within weeks, not within months,” Marin told reporters at a Stockholm press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson.
Marin stressed that as a NATO partner but not a member, Finland was not covered under Article 5, which states that an attack on one member should be considered an attack on all.
“There is no other way to have security guarantees than under NATO’s deterrence and common defence as guaranteed by NATO’s Article 5,” Marin said.
Finnish MPs on Wednesday also received a white paper on the country’s security situation and a potential membership in the military alliance in light of the war in Ukraine.
The paper will serve as the starting point for parliamentary debates beginning next week.
Many analysts predict Finland could submit a bid in time for a NATO summit in June.
Finland’s leaders have in the past opted to stay out of NATO in part to avoid provoking Russia.
During the Cold War, Finland agreed to stay out of western security cooperation in exchange for guarantees from Moscow not to invade.
Yesterday, a video emerged appearing to show Russian missiles systems heading along a road twowards Helsinki.
The unverified footage suggests Russia could be bolstering up defences on its border with Finland - just as it did with Ukraine before the invasion.
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