Sweden and Finland on the threshold of NATO membership
Sweden and Finland on the threshold of NATO membership

Author(s): Justyna Gotkowska, Witold Rodkiewicz
Subject(s): Government/Political systems, International relations/trade, Political behavior, Comparative politics
Published by: OSW Ośrodek Studiów Wschodnich im. Marka Karpia
Keywords: Sweden and Finland; NATO membership;
Summary/Abstract: On 17 May, the foreign ministers of Sweden and Finland signed their applications to join the North Atlantic Alliance, and these were officially submitted to NATO in Brussels a day later. This marked the end of a process of revolutionary speed to form internal political consensus, fundamentally changing the security policy of the two hitherto non-aligned states. The brutal Russian invasion of Ukraine caused a sudden change in public opinion in Finland, which influenced the position of the Finnish political parties. The expected turnaround in Helsinki’s security policy in turn influenced the stance of Sweden’s governing Social Democrats. During the accession process Sweden and Finland, with the help of the NATO member states, will have to remove Turkey’s objections to their NATO membership and be prepared for Russian retaliatory actions.

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