Sweden and Finland apply for NATO membership White House meeting immediately

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Sweden and Finland in Northern Europe are on a journey to join NATO, the Western military alliance.

The two countries submitted applications for accession to NATO headquarters side by side.

Shortly after applying for membership, the leaders of the two countries met President Joe Biden at the White House.

Correspondent Lee Seung-guk.

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Sweden and Finland have taken the first step toward joining NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

The two countries that signed the official application for membership in NATO simultaneously submitted the application to the NATO Secretary-General on the 18th of local time.

Sweden and Finland have maintained a neutral stance following a long-standing policy of military non-alignment, and have only maintained cooperative relations without joining NATO.

However, after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, public opinion in favor of NATO membership was created to ensure security, and the application went through parliamentary approval and application.

“It is a strong message and a clear signal that the two countries are united as they move into the future that lies ahead.”

Russia is opposed to Sweden and Finland’s push to join NATO.

“It will be another major mistake with great repercussions,” the Russian deputy foreign minister said in a statement.

Russia has decided to withdraw from the Baltic States Council, a regional cooperative between countries in the Baltic Sea, to which Sweden and Finland belong.

NATO intends to proceed with the membership process, which normally takes up to a year, as soon as possible, but there are other member countries such as Turkey who oppose it, so it seems that persuasion work will be inevitable for the time being.

It is known that the two countries have already sent delegations to Turkey.

Swedish Prime Minister Andersson and Finnish President Ninistö meet with US President Biden at the White House the day after their application for membership.

The U.S. invitation to these leaders is interpreted as a way to show U.S. support and pressure Turkey at the same time.

This is Yonhap News TV Lee Seung-guk.

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