Two years after Russia invaded Ukraine, Sweden has officially joined NATO. The Scandinavian nation was forced to face its national security policies and ultimately concluded support for the alliance was in its best interest of safety.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson submitted final documentation to the U.S. government on Thursday, finally bringing the prolonged process to completion.
"Good things come to those who wait," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said as he received Sweden's accession documents from Kristersson.
Blinken added that "everything changed" after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and noted several polls attesting to a considerable shift in Swedish public opinion on joining NATO.
"Swedes realized something very profound: that if Putin was willing to try to erase one neighbor from the map, then he might well not stop there."
Sweden and Finland share a 1,340 km border with Russia, and for NATO, this marks the most significant addition in decades.
It also creates a massive dent in the plan of Russian President Putin Vladimir, who has boldly fought against any further growth for the alliance.
"Today is a truly historic day. Sweden is now a member of NATO," Kristersson said. "We will defend freedom together with the countries closest to us - both in terms of geography, culture, and values."
As a NATO member, Sweden will benefit from the alliance's defense guarantee, which states an attack on one member is treated as an attack on all.
Hakan Yucel, 54, an IT worker in the Swedish capital, said of the accession: "Before, we were outside and felt a little bit alone ... I think that the threat from Russia, it's going to be much less now."
Contributions to NATO forces from the Nordic country include state-of-the-art submarines and a substantial fleet of domestically produced Gripen fighter jets. This is a crucial link between the Atlantic and the Baltic.
Russia has sent ominous threats to take unknown "political and military-technical counter-measures" regarding Sweden's move.
"Joining NATO is really like buying insurance, at least as long as the United States is actually willing to be the insurance provider," said Barbara Kunz, a researcher at the defense think tank SIPRI.
For more than 200 years, Sweden has objected to military alliances and adopted a neutral stance in times of war. The newfound membership represents a clean break from outdated traditions for the nation.
As recently as 2021, Sweden's defense minister continuously declined NATO membership, only for the then-Social Democrat government to apply following suit with its neighbor, Finland just a few months later.
"I guess [Sweden] had to take a stance really and I'm happy that we actually did and that we are safeguarded by NATO because the tension with Russia has been growing for a couple of years," said Carl Fredrik Aspegren, 28, a student in Stockholm.
Although Finland was accepted into the alliance last year, Sweden was left hanging in the balance due to hesitation from Turkey and Hungary, both of which are on friendly terms with Russia.
Turkey approved Sweden's application in January, while Hungary further delayed the ratification until Kristersson visited Budapest in good faith on Feb. 2. It was then both countries agreed to a fighter jet deal.
