Finnish and Swedish media claim that the governments of both countries intend to submit a joint application to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in May.
The Finnish newspaper ‘Iltalehti’ indicates that Sweden suggested to Finland that both countries agree on a common day to express their willingness to join NATO. A measure that Finland would accept if the Swedish government is ready to take the step of joining the Organization.
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According to the aforementioned newspaper, both countries would have agreed that, if they manage to reach an agreement on the application to NATO, they would make the request in the middle of May 2022, just when the president of Finland Sauli Niinistö visits Stockholm.
“NATO applications from Finland and Sweden should be published in week 20, i.e. the week starting May 16, if coexistence is successful”, indicated the quoted medium.
This information was also published by the Swedish media ‘Expressen’, which verified the news with Swedish officials, who ratified the intention to advance in the joint accession to the Organization.
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According to ‘Expressen’, “Finland previously expressed a clear wish to the Swedish government that the countries act together and jointly apply for membership.”.
Both media assure that the desire to advance in the process with NATO is evident in both nations. In turn, the two countries want it to be a process that moves quickly.
NATO applications from Finland and Sweden should be published in week 20
The process is already advancing in both nations. In fact, the Finnish Parliament began last Wednesday to debate its accession to better protect itself against the possibility of Russian aggression.
The 200 members of the Eduskunta, the national parliament, have a clear majority in favor of membership in a vote that is likely to take place before the summer.
According to Finnish media estimates, a hundred have already decided to vote in favor of accession and 12 against. The others wait for the debates to make a decision.
Finland broke with its strict neutrality at the end of the Cold War and with its accession to the European Union in 1995. It currently enjoys a NATO partner status.
For the Nordic country, which shares a 1,300-kilometre border with Russia, joining the 30-member Atlantic Alliance would give it a “considerably greater” deterrent against an attack by its powerful neighbor.
According to a survey, about two-thirds of the 5.5 million Finns would be in favor of joining.
Sweden, for its part, is studying the possibility of joining, because according to Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, the invasion in Ukraine has strongly affected security in Europe, which led them to change their point of view on accession.
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The consequences of his possible entry into NATO
In the midst of the conflict, Moscow tries to discourage them from their possible accession, indicating that the decision made by Finland and Sweden will affect relations with Russia.
“Being a member of NATO will not strengthen their national security. De facto, they (Finland and Sweden) will be in the front line of NATO,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
Both countries “must understand the consequences of this measure for our bilateral relations,” the Russian official said.
A few days ago, the former Russian president and current number two of the Russian Security Council, Dmitri Medvedev, also stated that if Finland and Sweden joined the Atlantic Alliance, Moscow would reinforce its military means, especially nuclear, in the Baltic Sea and near Scandinavia. .
For the entry of these countries, the vote must be unanimous. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg estimated that there would be no obstacles.
INTERNATIONAL WRITING*
*With information from AFP
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