(Photo: TASS)

“Sweden is a strong, capable defense partner that champions NATO’s values, and will further strengthen the Alliance once its NATO accession is completed,” the State Department said in a written statement, adding that “Sweden’s membership will strengthen NATO’s collective defense and enhance the alliance’s ability to respond to security challenges in the Euro-Atlantic area.”

Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson said he hopes that accession would happen “as soon as possible”. Both Sweden and Finland applied for membership in NATO last year, but only Finland was approved in April of 2023. Under NATO rules, all 31 members must agree before a new country can join. Turkey and Hungary are currently the only two NATO members that have yet to greenlight Sweden’s accession.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan submitted a bill approving Sweden’s NATO membership bid to parliament for ratification, but it is still unclear when Ankara will schedule a vote to pass the bill.