By Maddy Savageb | Stockholm |
Almost two years after applying to join NATO, many Swedes say there is palpable relief that the wait to secure membership in the military alliance is finally over.
As Stockholm commuters rushed to work in temperatures of -1C, few were in the mood for a detailed post-mortem of the application process. But many said they already felt safer, just a day after Sweden officially joined NATO, following a document handover in Washington.
“I think it’s great, actually. It feels safe, and about time,” said 58-year-old Kristina McConnell, who used to work in the military and was on her way to the city centre law firm where she now practised.
Sweden embraced wartime neutrality for more than 200 years, and a decade ago a majority of residents were against joining the multinational military alliance.
But support for membership crept up in the mid-2010s, amidst growing signs of Russian aggression in the region, including reports of spy planes in Baltic airspace and a suspected submarine in Swedish waters.
In early 2022, the country’s then Social Democrat government – long opposed to joining NATO – reversed its position, following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and Sweden swiftly applied for membership.
“Swedes were horrified by Russia’s action; they saw their elites rapidly change position on Nato; and they went along with it,” explained Nicholas Aylott, a political scientist at Södertörn University and the Swedish Institute of International Affairs.
Polls suggested about two thirds of voters were in favour of joining NATO as Sweden formally applied in May 2022. That figure has largely stayed constant; 63% of those asked in January 2024 said they supported Sweden becoming a Nato member, in a survey for polling firm Novus.
At Sergels torg, central Stockholm’s huge black-and-white paved square, Wilma, 16, said she already thought she would feel safer in her everyday life, now that Sweden was part of the 32-member Nato alliance.
“If Russia were to attack us for example, then we have several countries backing us up, and so you can feel more secure.”
There is also a clear sense of pride amongst many Swedes that their small country of just 10 million is being viewed as a valuable new member by others in the alliance.
On Friday morning, Sweden’s commercial television news TV4 led its bulletins with video clips of US President Joe Biden mentioning Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in his State of the Union address.
The cameras zoomed in on the centre-right Moderate party leader beaming in the crowd as Biden said: “Mr prime minister, welcome to Nato, the strongest military alliance the world has ever known.”
Swedish tabloid Expressen wrote a round-up of how international media had responded to the development, citing US network NBC describing it as “the most significant expansion of the Western military alliance for decades”, and an editorial in Norwegian newspaper VG declaring that an “old dream of a Nordic defence union” had finally been fulfilled.
Sweden’s membership application stalled because of opposition from Nato members Hungary and Turkey, who only recently reversed their positions.
Turkey had initially withheld approval in a row over what it called Sweden’s support for Kurdish separatists, while Hungary accused Sweden of being hostile.
Dr Aylott said the “long wait since Sweden’s application” had been a “source of much frustration” for Swedish politicians from across the spectrum.
The lecturer added that “most of the political class is somewhere between mildly euphoric and just relieved” that the paperwork was complete.
But there are still those who do not support Sweden’s Nato membership.
The country’s Left party and the Green party remain are opposed.
On Thursday, Left party lawmaker Håkan Svenneling appeared on Swedish public service television network SVT, saying there was now a risk of Sweden “being drawn into others’ wars and conflicts”.
Kerstin Bergeå, Chair of the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society (Svenska freds), told the same network that state money would be better spent on “investments in diplomacy, in prevention, in addressing the causes of conflict so that wars do not need to break out”.
Outside Stockholm central station, 21-year-old Stanislav Yordanov – who moved to Sweden from Bulgaria when he was nine – said his family was split on Nato membership.
The car rental sales agent believed Sweden’s accession “is good”, while other relatives “think it will trigger some nasty reactions from other countries”.
The official line from the government and the military is that there is a possibility of conflict, but since all Nato members are expected to help an ally which comes under attack, Sweden will now be better protected.
Still, in January, two top defence officials warned that Swedes should mentally and logistically start preparing for war.
Despite accusations of alarmism, the messaging appeared to have a limited impact on the public, with few signs of panic-buying in Swedish supermarkets.
“My impression is that most ordinary people are far less engaged [than the political elite],” said Dr Aylott. “Despite attempts by politicians and the military’s top brass to sound warnings recently about the danger of conflict spreading, few Swedes really think that the country is under serious threat.”
But Aylott suggested that joining Nato would have a small but noticeable visual impact, which could impact public discussions.
He said there was already a public debate about where and when the Nato flag should be flown by public institutions, and increased military co-operation would likely result in an increased military presence in the region.
“Nato countries’ warships have quite often docked in Swedish ports. Still, there will probably be more of that – more foreign soldiers on Swedish soil, more joint exercises,” he explained, “and it might be quite visible.”
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