Sweden formally joined NATO on Thursday as the 32nd member of the transatlantic military alliance, ending decades of post-World War II neutrality as concerns about Russian aggression in Europe have grown following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken presided over a ceremony at which Sweden’s “instrument of accession” to the alliance was officially deposited at the State Department.
“This is a historic moment for Sweden. It is historic for the alliance. It is history for the transatlantic relationship,” Blinken said. “Our NATO alliance is now stronger and bigger than ever.”
Kristersson wrote on social media that “we are a safer country.”
Kristersson was scheduled to visit the White House on Thursday and will be guest of honor at President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address to Congress.
The White House said having Sweden as a NATO ally “will make the United States and our allies even more secure.”
“NATO is the most powerful defensive alliance in the history of the world, and it is as critical today to ensuring the security of our citizens as it was 75 years ago, when our alliance was founded from the remnants of World War II,” NATO said in a statement.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg described it as “a historic day.”
“Sweden will now take its rightful place at the NATO table, with an equal voice in shaping NATO’s policies and decisions,” he said in a statement.
Article 5 of the NATO treaty obliges all members to come to the aid of an ally whose territory or security is threatened. It has only been activated once – by the United States after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks – and is the collective security guarantee Sweden has sought since Russia invaded Ukraine.
Sweden, along with Finland – which joined NATO last year – abandoned the military neutrality that was a hallmark of Nordic states’ foreign policy during the Cold War after Russia invaded Ukraine.
Biden and his NATO counterparts have vowed that Ukraine will also join someday.
Sweden’s membership was delayed due to objections from NATO members Turkey and Hungary.