The Alliance stands ready to guarantee Sweden's security during the period of consideration of its possible application for membership.
NATO promises to expand its presence near the Swedish border and in The Baltic Sea, while Sweden's potential application for membership in the North Atlantic Alliance is being considered. This was stated by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in an interview with SVT.
Stoltenberg added that NATO will find a solution to meet Sweden's needs for security guarantees during the transition period, which can last up to a year.
“From the potential moment when Sweden submits an application and NATO says that it would like Sweden to join (the alliance), NATO will have an obligation to be able to guarantee Sweden's security,” the alliance's secretary general said. In particular, Stoltenberg said that this would include strengthening NATO's presence around Sweden and in the Baltic Sea.
Read also: Sweden has received promises from the United States and Britain on safeguards before joining NATO
Earlier it was reported that Finland and Sweden plan to apply for NATO membership in May . Thus, both countries have decided to speed up the accession process without waiting for the Alliance's summit in late June.
However, Russia has threatened Sweden and Finland with “consequences” if it joins NATO. Moscow is nervous about the prospect of enlargement of the Alliance. But will Russia open a “second front” in the Baltic Sea? This is stated in the article Alina Gritsenko “Sweden on the way to NATO: what will Russia respond?”.
