Key Takeaways
- Sweden is ready to take responsibility in NATO, underscoring its commitment to collective security.
- Ulf Kristersson highlighted Sweden’s unique capabilities in air defence and cyber‑security.
- Turkey and Hungary must still ratify Sweden’s accession; the timeline remains uncertain.
- Finland’s recent NATO membership strengthens regional defence coordination.
Stockholm: Stockholm is ready to take responsibility as a NATO member and has much to contribute to the alliance.
“Sweden is ready to take responsibility in NATO. We have unique capabilities which we can contribute [to the alliance],” Kristersson said on Tuesday at a joint press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
On Monday, the office of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Sputnik that it had proposed to the parliament to ratify Sweden’s application to join NATO. Stoltenberg earlier expressed hope that the process would not take long.
Sweden, along with Finland, submitted its NATO application in May 2022, several months after Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine. Finland became a member of the alliance in April 2023. Sweden’s application is still pending ratification by Turkey and Hungary.
