Sweden officially became a member of NATO on Thursday, after Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson deposited his country’s accession ratification documents at the US State Department in the presence of Minister of State Antony Blinken. Sweden became the 32nd member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, breaking with the policy of neutrality since the Second World War.
“Good things happen to those who wait. By accepting the ratification documents of the accession, let me be the first to welcome Sweden as a party to the Washington Treaty and as the 32nd member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization”, said Blinken. “It wasn’t an easy ride, but I think we knew from day one that we were going to be here today, and we are here now,” he added.
Kristersson has been received by Joe Biden at the White House, and then he would be the guest of honor at the US President’s annual speech to Congress. The Swedish Prime Minister called his country’s entry into the defense alliance a victory for freedom. According to a statement from the White House, Sweden’s accession to NATO “will make the United States and its allies even safer.”
NATO is the strongest defense alliance in world history, and today it is just as vital to guarantee the safety of our citizens as it was 75 years ago, when our alliance was founded on the ruins of the Second World War, according to a statement from the office of the US president.
Sweden’s flag will be raised on Monday in front of the NATO headquarters in Brussels alongside the other 31 member states.
In his statement issued on the occasion of Sweden’s accession to NATO, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg spoke of a historic day. As he said, in the future, Sweden will be under the protection provided by Article 5 of the Charter of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which is “an absolute guarantee of the freedom and security of the Allies”. He added that Sweden’s accession also makes NATO stronger, given that the country has an efficient army and a developed military industry.
MTI
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