Sweden has officially became the 32nd member of Nato, in a landmark moment for the historically neutral country and the western military alliance.
Stockholm’s ratification process was finally completed in Washington as Sweden and Hungary, the last country to ratify Sweden’s membership, submitted the necessary documents after a drawn-out process that has taken nearly two years.
For Sweden, it marks the end of a 20-month-long wait that started in May 2022 when it submitted its application to join alongside Finland, prompted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February that year. Finland became Nato’s 31st member last year.
Ratification also marks a historic change in Sweden’s national and international identity as it continues to shift away from its previously neutral stance – a process that began at the end of the cold war.
It also cements Nato’s control of the Nordic region, with all countries now members, and makes the Baltic an entirely “Nato sea”.
The process was completed at about 5.30pm Swedish time, when the Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, presided at a ceremony in which Sweden’s “instrument of accession” to the alliance was officially deposited at the state department. “Good things come to those who wait. No better example,” said Blinken.
Kristersson said Sweden was “coming home” to Nato.
“Today is a truly historic day. Sweden is now a member of Nato,” he said. “We are humble but we are also proud. Unity and solidarity will be a guiding light. Sweden is now leaving 200 years of neutrality and military non-alignment behind. it is a major step but a very natural step.”
The Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, was among the first to congratulate Sweden and said the Swedish flag would be raised outside Nato HQ in Brussels on Monday.
“It’s official – Sweden is now the 32nd member of Nato, taking its rightful place at our table,” he wrote on social media. “Sweden’s accession makes Nato stronger, Sweden safer, and the whole alliance more secure.”
Sweden’s journey to Nato membership – which started under former prime minister Magdalena Andersson, of the Swedish Social Democrat party, and was taken over in 2022 by her successor, Kristersson, of the Moderate party – has been diplomatically fraught and long-winded.
First, Turkey made multiple demands regarding Sweden’s stance towards members of the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK), which is deemed a terrorist group by Turkey, the US and the EU. Then, the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and members of the US Congress had tied Turkey’s backing of Sweden’s Nato membership with congressional approval of the $20bn (£15.7bn) sale of Lockheed Martin aircraft and modernisation kits to Turkey.
Turkey finally gave Sweden the green light in January, but Hungary continued to drag its feet, often giving obscure reasons. Some observers attributed the delay to Hungary’s nationalist prime minister, Viktor Orbán, who has close ties to Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin. Others think it had more to do with Orbán’s desire to flaunt Hungary’s military and economic leverage, especially to a domestic audience. Hungary’s parliament finally voted “yes” at the end of last month.
Andersson said: “We have a stronger defence of our beloved Sweden. A better opportunity to defend our freedom, our democracy, and our way of life.”
Kerstin Bergeå, the president of the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Association (SPAS), an anti-war campaign group, said Sweden’s Nato membership was a “risky misprioritisation that will lead to increased tension, polarisation and militarisation at a time where we need the exact opposite”.
She added: “A Nato membership has uncritically been presented as a boon for Sweden’s security but increased armament, joining a nuclear alliance, and allying ourselves with undemocratic countries is not what leads to sustainable peace and security.”
On Thursday night, Kristersson addressed his country in a televised speech from the Swedish embassy in Washington, describing his happiness at joining Nato, which he said made Sweden “a safer country than we were yesterday”.
Attempting to strike a gentle and reassuring tone, he addressed those who were opposed to Nato membership by framing it as a natural conclusion to a long journey. He said “alone isn’t strong” and that Sweden’s security was connected to that of the wider world. He closed his speech by declaring “one for all, all for one” and declaring a “new epoch for Sweden”.
Nato has wasted no time in integrating Sweden into military manoeuvres. This week, Nordic Response, a first-of-its-kind military training exercise that includes Sweden and Finland, began across the region, involving more than 20,000 soldiers.
On Wednesday, two American bombers escorted by Swedish fighter planes flew over Stockholm and Uppsala in a joint exercise in the middle of the day – a highly symbolic moment for a country with a long tradition of neutrality.
Sweden recently signed a deal giving the US full access to 17 of its military bases and announced plans to send its forces to Latvia.
