On the 16th, Swedish Prime Minister Andersson announced that he had decided to apply for membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Sweden has maintained military neutrality for about 200 years, but has changed its security policy following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
It was revealed at a press conference held in Stockholm. The Social Democratic Labor Party, which is headed by Mr. Andersson, has announced its support for joining NATO on the 15th. It was judged that the application environment was set up because the major political parties were in line with the support for membership.
Andersson explained at a press conference that he would apply in the next few days in step with Finland. He said that it would not take more than a year from application to actual accession.
On the 15th, Finland, which is not a member of NATO, announced a policy to apply for membership in the same Northern Europe. Finnish President Sauli Niinistö will visit Sweden from the 17th to meet with Andersson and others.
NATO welcomes Finland and Sweden’s accession policy. Secretary-General Stortemberg said at a press conference on the 15th that the two countries would expedite the accession process as soon as they formally applied.
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