Sweden's ruling Social Democratic Party on Sunday said it was in favour of joining NATO, reversing its decades-long opposition and paving the way for the country to submit a membership application.

The turnaround comes amid soaring political and public support in Sweden for joining the Western military alliance after Russia's February 24th invasion of Ukraine.

The issue has divided Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson's Social Democrats, with some party members expressing concern that the decision was being rushed through.

The party said Sunday that if Sweden's application were approved, it would work to express "unilateral reservations against the deployment of nuclear weapons and permanent bases on Swedish territory."

The announcement came just hours after neighbouring Finland announced its official intention to apply for membership.

The two countries have expressed a desire to act in unison and submit their applications jointly, in a move seen as a deterrent against aggression from Russia.

A security policy review by the parties in Sweden's parliament presented on Friday concluded that Swedish NATO membership would reduce the risk of conflict in northern Europe.

The report stopped short of offering a concrete recommendation on whether to join, but noted that it was "not realistic to develop bilateral defence alliances outside existing European and Euro-Atlantic structures."

It also noted that "within the framework of current cooperation, there is no guarantee that Sweden would be helped if it were the target of a serious threat or attack."

Sweden, which was neutral in World War II, has stayed out of military alliances for more than 200 years, though it has forged closer ties with NATO since the 1990s.

Ankara says Finland constructive, Sweden 'provocative' in NATO talks
Ankara (AFP) May 15, 2022 - Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Sunday lauded Finland's conciliatory approach but criticised Sweden for "provocative" statements during talks in Berlin on the two countries joining NATO.

Turkey on Friday threatened to block NATO's enlargement process with the two Nordic countries, which requires the unanimous approval of the alliance's members.

"The Swedish foreign minister's statements are unfortunately not constructive. She continues to make provocative remarks," Cavusoglu told reporters in Berlin on the sidelines of an informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers.

The minister struck a more conciliatory tone towards Finland, which he described as "very respectful" in the face of Ankara's "concerns".

"But we don't see the same thing in Sweden," he insisted.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday criticised the two countries for serving as "safe havens for terrorists of the PKK", the Kurdistan Workers' Party, which is blacklisted as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the European Union and the United States.

"We have always supported NATO's open door policy," Cavusoglu said.

"But the fact that these two countries are in contact with members of a terrorist organisation, that Sweden sends them weapons and that they impose restrictions on the export of defence equipment to Turkey goes against the spirit of alliance."

Cavusoglu said he was waiting to see what guarantees would be offered by the two countries.

"It is absolutely necessary to end support for terrorist organisations and lift restrictions on exports to Turkey. I'm not saying that as a bargaining chip, but because that's what it means to be allies," he said.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg voiced confidence Sunday at resolving Turkey's concerns and stressed that Ankara was not seeking to block the two countries' membership.

"I am confident we'll be able to find common ground, consensus on how to move on membership issues," Stoltenberg told reporters virtually at a NATO meeting in Berlin.

Several NATO member states said Sunday they were "on the right track" to reach a consensus on the integration of Finland and Sweden, with Berlin even saying their membership could come "very quickly".

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Finland president spoke with Putin; Kremlin says ending Finnish neutrality a 'mistake'
Helsinki (AFP) May 14, 2022
Finnish President Sauli Niinisto spoke with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Saturday regarding the Nordic country's application for NATO membership, which is expected to be officially announced this weekend, his office said. "The conversation was direct and straight-forward and it was conducted without aggravations. Avoiding tensions was considered important," Niinisto was quoted as saying in a statement by his office. "The phone call was initiated by Finland." Finland "wants to t ... read more