NATO News and Discussion

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Russia warns of nuclear, hypersonic deployment if Sweden and Finland join NATO
April 14, 2022
1:44 PM PDT

LONDON, April 14 (Reuters) - One of Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest allies warned NATO on Thursday that if Sweden and Finland joined the U.S.-led military alliance then Russia would deploy nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles in a European exclave. Finland, which shares a 1,300-km (810-mile) border with Russia, and Sweden are considering joining the NATO alliance. Finland will decide in the next few weeks, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Wednesday.

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said that should Sweden and Finland join NATO then Russia would have to strengthen its land, naval and air forces in the Baltic Sea. Medvedev also explicitly raised the nuclear threat by saying that there could be no more talk of a "nuclear free" Baltic - where Russia has its Kaliningrad exclave sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania. "There can be no more talk of any nuclear–free status for the Baltic - the balance must be restored," said Medvedev, who was Russian president from 2008 to 2012.

Medvedev said he hoped Finland and Sweden would see sense. If not, he said, they would have to live with nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles close to home. When asked how Washington views the potential addition of Sweden and Finland to NATO in light of Russia's warning, the U.S. State Department said there was no change in Washington's position and repeated that "NATO's open door is an open door."
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ru ... 022-04-14/
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Sweden and Finland 'agree to both apply for NATO membership in May' in defiance of Russian threats
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/articl ... reats.html

Two newspapers - one Swedish, the other Finnish - have reported the governments of Sweden and Finland have agreed to submit NATO applications at the same time and that it will happen in the middle of next month.

Finnish newspaper Iltalehti said that the Swedish government has expressed a wish to Finland that they apply together in the week starting May 22 and Swedish government sources confirmed the information to Sweden's Expressen tabloid.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has led to growing support in Sweden and Finland, a Russian neighbour, for joining NATO.

Though not members, both Nordic countries closely co-operate with NATO, allowing, among other things, the alliance's troops to carry out exercises on their soil.

Helsinki and Stockholm have also substantially intensified their bilateral defence co-operation in the past years, and there was talk earlier this month that the Nordic territories could both seek to join NATO in the coming months amid Russian aggression.
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Breaking: Finnish Parliament's Defence Committee Recommends NATO Membership
Source: U.S. News
HELSINKI (Reuters) - Joining NATO is the best option for Finland to guarantee its national security, the Finnish Parliament's defence committee said on Tuesday, ahead of Finland's official decision on whether or not to join the Western defence union in the coming days.

Finland's membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) would significantly increase the deterrent for becoming a target of Russia's aggression, the defence committee concluded in a statement.

Read more: https://www.usnews.com/news/world/artic ... membership
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Finland moves toward joining NATO amid Russian threats
Source: Associated Press/Oleksandr Stashevskyi

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Finland’s leaders Thursday came out in favor of applying to join NATO, and Sweden could do the same within days, in a historic realignment on the continent 2 1/2 months after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine sent a shiver of fear through Moscow’s neighbors.

The Kremlin reacted by warning it will be forced to take retaliatory “military-technical” steps.

(snip)

Finland’s president and prime minister announced that the Nordic country should apply right away for membership in NATO, the military defense pact founded in part to counter the Soviet Union.

“You (Russia) caused this. Look in the mirror,” Finnish President Sauli Niinisto said this week.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukrai ... 31d6692683
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Erdogan says Turkey not supportive of Finland, Sweden joining NATO
Source: Reuters
President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday it was not possible for NATO-member Turkey to support plans by Sweden and Finland to join the pact, saying the Nordic countries were "home to many terrorist organisations".

Though Turkey has officially supported enlargement since it joined NATO 70 years ago, its opposition could pose a problem for Sweden and Finland given new members need unanimous agreement...
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/erdogan-s ... 022-05-13/
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Sweden’s governing party backs NATO membership
May 15, 2022

Sweden’s governing Social Democrat Party on Sunday backed the idea of the country joining NATO in a historic policy U-turn that clears the way for a formal membership application in the coming days.

The move brings Sweden into line with neighboring Finland, where both the president and prime minister said last week that their country should join the Western military alliance.

Observers say Sweden’s official NATO bid could come as soon as Monday, with Finland likely moving on a similar timeline.
https://www.politico.eu/article/sweden- ... raine-war/
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Once neutral Sweden seeks NATO membership in historic shift
Source: AP

By KARL RITTER

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden on Monday decided to join neighboring Finland in seeking NATO membership, ending more than two centuries of military nonalignment in a historic shift prompted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson warned that the Nordic country would be in a “vulnerable position” during the application period and urged her fellow citizens to brace themselves for the Russian response.

“Russia has said that that it will take countermeasures if we join NATO,” she said. “We cannot rule out that Sweden will be exposed to, for instance, disinformation and attempts to intimidate and divide us.”

Sweden’s move came a day after the governing Social Democratic party endorsed a plan for the country to join the trans-Atlantic alliance and Finland’s government announced that it would seek to join NATO.



Sweden's Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, right, and the Moderate Party's leader Ulf Kristersson give a news conference in Stockholm, Sweden, Monday, May 16, 2022. Sweden's government has decided to apply for a NATO membership. (Henrik Montgomery/TT News Agency via AP)
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukrai ... c0f14d4ef6
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Switzerland considering NATO membership
Analysis: Neutral Switzerland leans closer to NATO in response to Russia
BERN, May 15 (Reuters) - Switzerland's fabled neutral status is about to face its biggest test in decades, with the defence ministry tilting closer to Western military powers in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The defence ministry is drawing up a report on security options that include joint military exercises with NATO countries and "backfilling" munitions, Paelvi Pulli, head of security policy at the Swiss defence ministry told Reuters.

The details of the policy options under discussion in the government have not been previously reported.

"Ultimately, there could be changes in the way neutrality is interpreted," Pulli said in an interview last week. On a trip to Washington this week, Defence Minister Viola Amherd said Switzerland should work more closely with the U.S.-led military alliance, but not join it, Swiss media reported.

Neutrality, which kept Switzerland out of both world wars during the 20th century, was not an objective in itself, but was intended to increase Swiss security, Pulli said.

Other options include high-level and regular meetings between Swiss and NATO commanders and politicians, she said.

Moving so much closer to the alliance would mark a departure from the carefully nurtured tradition of not taking sides that its supporters say helped Switzerland prosper peacefully and maintain a special role as intermediary, including during the West's standoff with the Soviet Union.

The idea of full membership of NATO has been discussed, but whereas Sweden and Finland - countries that also have a history of neutrality - are on the verge of joining, Pulli said the report was unlikely to recommend Switzerland take that step.
Full Article: https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/ ... 022-05-15/
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Finland's parliament votes yes to NATO
Source: Reuters

HELSINKI, May 17 (Reuters) - Finland's parliament on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a proposal to apply for membership of the NATO military alliance in a historic policy shift prompted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

President Sauli Niinisto and the government decided officially on Sunday that Finland would apply for membership but the decision was pending parliament's approval.

Of the 200 lawmakers, 188 voted in favour and eight against the application, Speaker Matti Vanhanen said.

Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said the decision was no reason to celebrate because "there is war in Europe".
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/fi ... 022-05-17/
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Sweden signs NATO request, Finns to formally endorse move
Source: AP
STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden on Tuesday signed a formal request to join NATO, a day after the country announced it would seek membership in the 30-member military alliance. In neighboring Finland, lawmakers are expected later in the day to formally endorse Finnish leaders’ decision also to join.

The moves by the two Nordic countries, ending Sweden’s more than 200 years of military nonalignment and Finland’s nonalignment after World War II, have provoked the ire of the Kremlin.

While most NATO members are keen to welcome the two countries as quickly as possible, Turkey has potentially complicated their accession by saying it cannot allow them to become members because of their perceived inaction against exiled Kurdish militants.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday doubled down on comments last week indicating that the two Nordic countries´ path to NATO would be anything but smooth. All 30 current NATO countries must agree to open the door to new members. He accused the two Nordic countries of refusing to extradite “terrorists” wanted by his country.




Read more: https://apnews.com/article/middle-east- ... 0281e77c51
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