Biden to sign NATO accession protocols for Sweden, Finland

New Delhi: US President Joe Biden will sign the accession protocols to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization for Sweden and Finland on Tuesday, August 9, according to his working schedule published by the White House on Monday.

“In the afternoon, the President will deliver remarks and sign the Instruments of Ratification for the Accession Protocols to the North Atlantic Treaty for the Republic of Finland and Kingdom of Sweden,” the statement noted.

Swedish and Finnish NATO membership would transform the security challenges of the Baltics overnight. The Baltic Sea would immediately become a NATO lake; any Russian hope for sea control would be gone, with the Swedish island of Gotland serving as an especially formidable barrier to Russian air and naval forces.

Article 10 and the Open Door Policy. The North Atlantic Treaty is the basis of the organization, and, as such, any changes including new membership require ratification by all current signers of the treaty.

Prime Minister Sanna Marin and President Sauli Niinistö at the press conference announcing Finland’s intent to apply to NATO on 15 May 2022. Military alliances in Europe at the end of 1982. Nato member countries are marked in blue and the Warsaw Pact in red.

(Vinayak)