Finland and Sweden considers joining NATO

Finland and Sweden could bid for membership of the 30-nation NATO alliance within days, ending decades of military non-alignment in a historic turning point sparked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Here is a brief look at the background and effects of their decisions.

What is NATO?

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is a defensive military alliance formed in 1949 by 12 countries including the US, Britain and France to counter the threat of post-war Soviet expansion in Europe.

Its joint guarantee of security is based on Article 5 of the treaty, which states that an attack on one member is an attack on all and obliges members to defend each other in the event of an armed attack.

Why aren't Finland and Sweden already members?

Both believed that joining the alliance would constitute an unnecessary provocation from Moscow, and as such have long pursued a policy of neutrality and then non-alignment to avoid angering a major regional power.

Finland's concerns were largely practical: it shares an 810-mile (1,300 km) border with Russia, which declared independence in 1917 after more than a century of Moscow rule, and its army fought Soviet forces twice during World War II before it ceded about 10% of its territory.

A 1948 agreement of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with Russia isolated Finland militarily from Western Europe, although the collapse of the Soviet Union and EU membership has since enabled it to emerge from Russia's shadow.

Sweden's opposition to NATO membership was ideological. Its post-war foreign policy focuses on multilateral dialogue and nuclear disarmament and has long seen itself as a facilitator on the international stage, shutting down its military after the end of the Cold War.

Since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, it has reinstated conscription and increased defence spending, but many on the Swedish left remain suspicious of US-led NATO's agenda, arguing that NATO membership only increases regional pressures.

Why are they considering joining now?

Finland's Prime Minister Sanna Marin and her Swedish counterpart Magdalena Andersson said last month that Russia's invasion of Ukraine "changed Europe's entire security landscape" and "dramatically changed mindsets" in the Nordic region.

Essentially, many Finns and Swedes are increasingly believing that joining NATO will help them protect themselves when faced with a patently belligerent and unpredictable Russian leader. Polls show that public support for NATO membership has tripled to about 75% in Finland and to about 60% in Sweden.

NATO membership would mean that Finland and Sweden would receive security guarantees from nuclear states for the first time.

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