Finland, Sweden's Accession To NATO 'Vital' Amid Current Security Crisis - Stoltenberg

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th July, 2022) Finland and Sweden's accession to NATO is "vital" amid the "biggest security crisis in decades," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday

"Welcoming Finland and Sweden into the alliance will make them safer, NATO stronger and all of us more secure. This is vital as we face the biggest security crisis in decades," Stoltenberg said during a press conference.

In mid-May, three months after the onset of the Ukraine crisis, Finland and Sweden submitted their NATO membership applications, abandoning decades of neutrality. Turkey, which had initially blocked their applications citing security concerns, dropped its objections in late June following rounds of consultations.

On July 5, the permanent representatives of NATO member states signed accession protocols for Finland and Sweden at the alliance's headquarters in Brussels. All members of the bloc have to ratify the protocols according to their national legislation.

Russia has repeatedly noted that NATO's actions suggest that it is aimed at confrontation. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that the expansion of the alliance will not bring security to Europe and that NATO's enlargement is a form of aggression. At the same time, he noted that he does not consider the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO an existential threat to Russia.