European Council President Charles Michel said on Tuesday that the future accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO would make not only the Atlantic alliance more secure, but the European Union itself.
“Let’s celebrate the signing of the NATO accession protocols for Finland and Sweden by all NATO allies, launching the ratification process,” Charles Michel wrote in a Twitter post.
According to the President of the European Council, “with the accession of Finland and Sweden, both the European Union and NATO will become safer and more secure.”
In this regard, he sent “warm congratulations” to Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin.
Finland and Sweden today took a decisive step towards becoming NATO members by signing their respective accession protocols with 30 Alliance ambassadors, allowing them to participate in the organization’s meetings while their capitals ratify access.
“This is a historic day. For Finland, Sweden, NATO. And for Euro-Atlantic security,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at a press conference after signing the protocols with which both Nordic countries were officially “invited” to join the organization.
Denmark today ratified the request of Sweden and Finland to join NATO, becoming the first country among the alliance’s current 30 member states to do so.
The procedures for ratifying accession protocols vary from one country to another: while in the United States two-thirds approval of the Senate (upper house of Congress) is required, in the United Kingdom a formal vote in Parliament is not required.
Following this process, the relevant approval protocols must be sent to the US Department of State, the depositary named in the alliance agreement.
Norway, Iceland and the Baltic states have announced their intention to ratify the expansion in the coming days, and the German parliament is expected to vote on Friday, before the summer break.
Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO on May 18, ending their traditional policy of non-alignment due to the war in Ukraine, despite having maintained close cooperation with the Western military organization for decades.
Last week and during the Madrid summit, NATO leaders agreed to start the accession process after the Nordic countries reached an agreement in principle with Turkey, which vetoed access.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
