Sweden’s accession to NATO marks a “dramatic and historical shift” of its security policy and means the alliance can “project force more effectively across Scandinavia”, a defence and security thinktank has said.
Stockholm cleared the final hurdle to joining NATO yesterday as Hungary dropped its opposition after months of delays.
Dr Neil Melvin, director of international security at the Royal United Services Institute, said it overturns Sweden’s history of neutrality “that stretches back to the Napoleonic period”.
“As part of NATO, Sweden is joining a nuclear alliance after decades when the country has been in the vanguard of the movement for disarmament and non-proliferation,” he said.
Dr Melvin added the country “notably brings to NATO a well-equipped army, over a hundred advanced fighters, a modern navy including five submarines, as well as a technologically advanced defence industrial base”.
Moscow now faces being “militarily excluded” from the Baltic Sea and its airspace, he added, “while NATO can project force more effectively across Scandinavia and into the High North and Arctic”.
“Russia is now confronted by the need to build up significant military force in its north to balance the new NATO regional strength, further stretching its resources.”
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