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NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Christerson presided over the flag-raising ceremony in Brussels.
Sweden's flag has been raised at NATO headquarters in Brussels, marking the nation's entry into the army alliance two years after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Christerson and NATO Secretary Common Jens Stoltenberg look on at two troopers waving a blue banner adorned with a yellow cross amid the official circle of the nationwide flag on the transatlantic group's places of work within the Belgian capital on Monday.
Earlier than the flag-raising ceremony, held amid rain, Christerson mentioned expectations had been “excessive”.
“We selected you, and also you selected us. All for one, and one for all,” the prime minister mentioned, including that his nation is a “proud” member and pledging that it’s going to uphold the values enshrined in NATO’s founding Washington Treaty.
“The safety scenario in our area has not been extra severe since World Battle II, and Russia will stay a menace to Euro-Atlantic safety for the foreseeable future,” Kristersen mentioned.
For his half, Stoltenberg mentioned Sweden turning into the alliance's thirty second member reveals that Russian President Vladimir Putin has “failed” in his Ukrainian battle technique to weaken it.
“When President Putin launched his full-scale invasion two years in the past, he needed much less management over NATO and extra management over his neighbors. He needed to destroy Ukraine as a sovereign state, however he failed,” Stoltenberg mentioned, including that Ukraine is “nearer to NATO than ever.”
The ceremony got here as 20,000 troops from 13 international locations started NATO workouts in Sweden's excessive north in addition to its neighbors Finland and Norway.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022 prompted Sweden and Finland, which share a 1,340 km (832 mi) border with Russia, to finish years of army non-alignment and be a part of the United States-led coalition. Inspired to use for.
Whereas Finland joined in April 2023, Sweden took nearly two years to hitch NATO as a result of Turkey and Hungary blocked the method that requires unanimous help from all members.
The Turkish Parliament gave its formal consent in January and the Hungarian Parliament gave its consent final week.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday referred to as the accession a historic second for Sweden, our alliance and transatlantic relations.
“Good issues come to those that wait,” Blinken mentioned as he obtained Sweden's accession paperwork in Washington, DC.
NATO members have given Ukraine their army and monetary help within the battle in opposition to Russian forces, however the tempo is slowing as US political will has damaged and Europe struggles to satisfy Ukrainian ammunition wants. Is.
Sweden brings well-trained and outfitted armed forces to the desk. It additionally provides a big fleet of state-of-the-art submarines and domestically produced Gripen fighter jets to NATO forces and might be an important hyperlink between the Atlantic and the Baltic.