Washington:

In the shadow of the war in Ukraine, Sweden became the 32nd member of NATO on Thursday, ending two centuries of official non-alignment and capping two years of painful diplomacy.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Thursday hailed his country’s membership of NATO as a “triumph for freedom” as it opens a new chapter in two centuries of non-alignment following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Joining NATO “is a victory for freedom today. Sweden made a free, democratic, sovereign and united choice to join NATO,” he said at a ceremony in Washington with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement: “This is a historic day. Sweden will now take its rightful place at the NATO negotiating table and have an equal role in shaping NATO policies and decisions. the right to speak.”

“After more than 200 years of non-alignment, Sweden now enjoys the protection afforded by Article 5, the ultimate guarantee of freedom and security for the Allies,” he said.

The Swedish government announced that it would convene a special government meeting to approve accession.

Later in the day, Sweden’s prime minister will attend President Joe Biden’s annual State of the Union address, where Biden has been trying to persuade rival Republicans to approve new aid to Ukraine.

Sweden’s blue and gold flag is expected to be raised at the NATO Alliance headquarters in Brussels on Monday.

Russia has vowed to take “countermeasures” against Sweden joining NATO, especially if the alliance’s troops and assets are deployed in the country.

Sweden and Finland, although militarily intertwined with the United States and EU members, have historically avoided formally joining NATO, which was formed during the Cold War to unite against the Soviet Union.

Sweden’s entry means all countries around the Baltic Sea except Russia will become part of the US-led military alliance, after Finland joined last year.

This has led some to refer to the stretch of sea as a “NATO lake”, with Western allies now appearing to be well-positioned to choke off Russia’s room for maneuver on this crucial shipping lane should war break out with Moscow.

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Sweden has not been involved in a war, including World War II, since the Napoleonic conflicts of the early 19th century.

But after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Finland and Sweden launched a joint bid. Ukraine has tried unsuccessfully to join NATO, which considers an attack on one member to be an attack on all.

Finland successfully joined in April 2023.

Sweden’s candidacy has stalled amid an aggressive push by Turkey, which has demanded that Stockholm, known for its liberal asylum policies, crack down on Kurdish militants opposed to Ankara.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan later demanded action after protesters under Sweden’s free speech laws desecrated Islam’s holy book, the Quran.

The United States has shown Turkey the prospect of purchasing F-16 fighter jets, which is obviously an unstated sweetener. Türkiye has been sanctioned by the United States for purchasing large-scale arms from Russia.

In January, after Turkey approved Sweden’s admission to Turkey, the Biden administration quickly approved the supply of F-16 fighter jets worth $23 billion to Turkey.

The United States is also providing Greece with more advanced F-35 jets worth $8.6 billion. Greece is a member of NATO and has a historic rivalry with Turkey and often tense relations.

Even with Turkey’s support, Sweden faces another hurdle as it needs the approval of the last remaining country, Hungary, whose nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban has often scorned Western allies.

The Hungarian Parliament approved Sweden’s accession on February 26. But in a final hiccup, Hungary failed to formally sign the accession documents after the resignation of one of Orban’s allies amid a scandal over the pardon of a convicted child, causing the Hungarian president to briefly absent himself from the largely ceremonial post. The accomplice of the abuser.

A recent poll by Swedish broadcaster SR showed that a majority of Swedes believe the country has sacrificed too much to join NATO, even though more than three-quarters believe NATO will enhance the country’s security.