Sweden officially joined NATO on Thursday, becoming its 32nd member.
Another view...
Sweden's NATO Accession Unlocks Defense Options to Fend Off Russia
www.bnnbloomberg.ca
... Sweden's entry into NATO can help solve a critical problem for military planners mapping out the alliance's defenses against a potential Russian attack: how to rapidly shuttle troops, weapons and other provisions to a front anywhere from the Baltic to the Arctic.
After months of delays, the green light for Sweden's membership means the Nordic nation can finally be woven into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's intricate defense plans, which designate Russia as a primary threat.
The move is more pressing with Russian troops starting to advance in Ukraine again. With Russian President Vladimir Putin's expansionist ambitions apparent, European officials have started warning about the prospect of an attack on NATO within the next few years.
"We know that our eastern neighbor is highly unpredictable and also unfortunately very aggressive," Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen said in an interview. "But Sweden knows, and we also tell Sweden, that as members of NATO we are stronger together."
After decades of non-alignment, Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO within months of the Kremlin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, fearing they were vulnerable to Putin's aggression. ...
Along with its strong navy and formidable air power, Sweden's geography will play a crucial role in helping NATO deter any Russian attack " be it in the Baltics, along the Finnish border, or in the Arctic, officials say.
Given the central part logistics play in sustaining a war, Sweden's roads and railways are often the fastest routes to traverse the curving Scandinavian peninsula, including from one point in Norway to another in the same country.
In the Baltic, long seen as NATO's Achilles heel, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania will be able to rely on more immediate help and new routes for supplies from Finland, but also now from Sweden. Sweden's island of Gotland, often referred to as an unsinkable aircraft carrier, cements NATO's position in the region, locking in control of critical naval routes and airspace.
With Sweden and Finland on board, the vulnerability of the Suwalki Gap is also lessened. That's a stretch of land between the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad and its ally Belarus which Moscow could cut off in a conflict. Allies in the past would have needed to squeeze through the gap to reinforce the Baltic nations.
Sweden has already said it aims to bolster NATO presence in Latvia by sending troops to the Canadian-led forces there. There are no current plans to station alliance troops in Sweden, but the matter will be discussed, the senior NATO official said. ...
@#29 ... could you please inform us the last time a country wanted to join the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO)? That's the Russian NATO. ...
I was specific in saying invaded and annexed by Russia, and did not say join CSTO.
But to your question...
Collective Security Treaty Organization - Membership
en.wikipedia.org
It looks like eight countries joined in 1994, one in 2006.
Two withdrew in 1999, and one in 2012.
Lol
NATO's European Allies Collectively at 2% GDP Defense Spending for 1st Time Ever
www.voanews.com
The graph in that link in #52 tells the whole story.
Also there aren't any "2% dues." That shows a stunning level of idiocy to even say that.
The Wale's Agreement lays it all out:
Allies currently meeting the NATO guideline to spend a minimum of 2% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence will aim to continue to do so.
NOTE: This is 2% of their GDP on their own defense, not dues to NATO, not a payment to the United States, and it's a pledge
Allies whose current proportion of GDP spent on defence is below this level will:
halt any decline in defence expenditure;
aim to increase defence expenditure in real terms as GDP grows;
aim to move towards the 2% guideline within a decade with a view to meeting their NATO Capability Targets and filling NATO's capability shortfalls.
"Aim to move towards within a decade"
These are goals. They aren't "dues." They aren't collected by other nations or by NATO.
www.nato.int
I highly recommend reading the above linked document, especially keeping in mind it was written in 2014.
Sections 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, etc. could have been just written. The entire thing is quire relevant today.
Related...
Military Commanders Rejoice at New NATO Members Amid Huge Joint Exercise and Russia's Looming Shadow
www.military.com
... ABOARD the Norwegian Coast Guard Vessel Bjrnya -- U.S., Finnish and Norwegian military officials flanked a representative from the newest NATO member, Sweden, on Friday as congratulations were shared and Russia remained top of mind.
Sweden officially joined NATO on Thursday, ending centuries of neutrality, amid the largest NATO exercise since 1988. It was a clear sign to the Kremlin that its full-scale invasion of Ukraine has not gone unmet, and that Nordic countries -- along with the U.S. and other NATO allies -- are prepared to defend their own borders.
U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Doug Perry, the commander of one of NATO's three operational hubs, was in attendance aboard a Norwegian ship off the coast of Alta, Norway, where U.S. and NATO allies are holding a major exercise, Nordic Response 2024. He told reporters that Sweden's accession to the alliance was critical to deterring Russia from further destabilizing the continent, something that members of the Swedish armed forces told Military.com they agreed with. ...
Drudge Retort Headlines
Russia Pounds Ukraine with Biggest Airstrikes in Weeks (70 comments)
Experts say the American Economy is Doing Well (60 comments)
Republicans Defend Child Marriage (60 comments)
RFK Jr. Says Worm Ate Part of His Brain, and Died in It (43 comments)
Johnson Survives MTG's Attempt to Trigger Ouster Vote (42 comments)
Project 2025 (35 comments)
CBO: Trump Tax Cut Extension Cost Swells to $3.8 Trillion (25 comments)
Top GOPers and Trump Won't Commit to Accept Election Results (23 comments)