|
Sweden and Finland sign mutal defense treaty with UK before NATO decision.
[Yahoo] Sweden and Finland are one step closer to joining NATO after signing a mutual defense treaty with the United Kingdom on Wednesday.The treaties were announced by British prime minister Boris Johnson during his visit to Stockholm and meeting with Swedish prime minister Magdalena Andersson. Formally termed “A Political Declaration of Solidarity,” the treaty pledges that the United Kingdom – a nuclear-armed state and NATO founding member – will intervene to defend Sweden if it “suffers disaster or an attack,” said Andersson. Johnson signed the treaty with Andersson during his visit and is expected to sign an identical instrument in Helsinki later today, during his bilateral meetings with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö and PM Sanna Martin. The agreements come as Finland and Sweden telegraph an impending decision to join the NATO, which currently has thirty members across Europe and North America. Though a public debate on membership has been ongoing in both countries for years, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has jolted public opinion in support of NATO. A recent poll by Sweden’s Aftonbladet newspaper showed that 57 percent of Swedes supported joining the military alliance, a jump from 37 percent in January of this year. In Finland, the figures were even more lopsided: soaring to 76 percent in support of membership from 28 percent in January. Posted by: 3dc 2022-05-12 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=632712 |