Swedenʼs ruling Social Democratic Party, which has advocated neutrality, has abandoned its course and now supports joining NATO. Then the parliament has to vote for this decision, now it has the majority of votes.
This is stated in the statement of the party.
This decision was made at todayʼs meeting on May 15.
"Thus, the Social Democrats will demand that Sweden, if NATOʼs application is approved, issue unilateral warnings against the deployment of nuclear weapons and permanent bases on Swedish territory," the ruling party added.
The Swedish government has already prepared a letter of application to NATO, according to Aftonbladet, citing a source familiar with the process. According to the information, the government will wait for Finland and intends to send applications together.
- On 15 May, Finland officially announced that it was applying to join NATO. To do this, the countryʼs parliament must vote in favor of applying for membership. They will join the bloc under a simplified procedure, as their armies meet NATO standards.