Sweden’s parliament (Riksdag) has officially approved the government’s request to join the North Atlantic Treaty and the agreement on the status of Nato.
The latest announcement comes several months after Sweden and Finland made an initial request to obtain Nato membership.
Officials from the two countries submitted their letters of application to Nato in May 2022. This decision was identified as a ‘historic move’ that was taken in response to addressing emerging security concerns after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The current approval from Riksdag was the last in-country hurdle for Sweden’s Nato accession plans.
Sweden’s application was ratified by all 30 members of Nato, but is awaiting final approval, reported Reuters.
According to a report by ABC News, only two Nato nations, namely Turkey and Hungary, are yet to approve the memberships of Sweden and Finland.
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By GlobalDataRiksdag has further approved the government’s request for associated legislative amendments.
According to Reuters’ report, the new bill was favoured by 296 members of the parliament while 37 votes were against the Swedish Government’s Nato accession proposal.
Riksdag noted that the government will now be required to make modifications to two laws related to Sweden’s pending application to join Nato.
The two amendments include ‘the Act on Operational Military Support’ and ‘the Act on Immunity and Privileges in Certain Cases.’
The objective of the two amendments, according to the Riksdag, is to simplify the process of requesting military support from Nato.
Simultaneously, the amendments will allow Nato, Sweden’s representatives and international staff members to use the ‘immunities’ and ‘privileges’ included under this agreement.
The legislative amendments are expected to be effective from the date decided by the Swedish Government.