Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Anderson holds a press conference in Stockholm, Sweden, on February 27th. (Patrik Jonsson / Stella Pictures / Abaca / Sipa USA / AP)
Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Anderson has announced her party’s support for the country applying to join NATO.
“We Social Democrats believe that the best thing for Sweden and the security of the Swedish people is our accession to NATO. This is a decision we made after very careful consideration,” Anderson told a news conference on Sunday.
Anderson noted that this decision reverses the position the country has taken for 200 years, leaving “a political line of security policies that we have had in various forms and forms.”
“For us Social Democrats, the military policy of non-alliance has served us well. But our analysis shows that it will not serve us so well in the future,” Anderson said. “This is not a decision we have taken lightly.”
The prime minister said the country must “adapt to reality” and make decisions based on the current climate.
“It is very clear that before and after February 24, 2022, Europe, Sweden and the Swedish people are living in a new, dangerous reality. “The European security order, on which Sweden has based its security policies for centuries, is now under attack,” Anderson said.
This expected statement follows the example of Finland announcing on Sunday its decision to apply to join NATO, after both countries had previously refrained from joining for historical and geopolitical reasons.
Earlier Sunday, the Social Democratic Party of Sweden posted a statement on its website saying it had decided the country should work for Sweden’s bid to join NATO.
The statement went on to say that if the request is approved by NATO, the country must work to establish unilateral conditions against the deployment of nuclear weapons and permanent bases on Swedish territory.
Swedish Foreign Minister Anne Linde called the “historic decision” a tweet.
Earlier on Sunday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said “NATO’s door is open” for Sweden and Finland.
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