Once-neutral Sweden seeks NATO membership in historic shift

17/5/2022 4:33

        Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson warned that the Nordic country would be in a “vulnerable position” during the application period and urged her fellow citizens to brace themselves for the Russian response.
        
        “Russia has said that that it will take countermeasures if we join NATO,” she said. “We cannot rule out that Sweden will be exposed to, for instance, disinformation and attempts to intimidate and divide us.”
        
        Sweden's move came a day after the country's governing Social Democratic party endorsed a plan for Sweden to join the trans-Atlantic alliance and Finland's government announced that it would seek to join NATO.
        
        Moscow has repeatedly warned Finland, which shares a 1,340-kilometer (830-mile) border with Russia, and Sweden of repercussions should they pursue NATO membership. But Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday seemed to downplay the significance of their move.