Source: China News Network
On July 5, local time, NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg, Finnish Foreign Minister Javisto and Swedish Foreign Minister Lind formally signed the protocol for Finland and Switzerland to join NATO.
On the 4th, NATO announced that Finland and Sweden have completed the "accession" negotiations, which means that the two countries have officially confirmed, willing and have the ability to fulfill the political, legal and military obligations of NATO members.
Now, Finland and Sweden, how far are they from becoming members of NATO?
On July 5, local time, Finnish Foreign Minister Javisto (left), Swedish Foreign Minister Lind (right) and NATO Secretary-General Stoltenberg attended a media conference after signing the protocol for Finland and Sweden to join nato at NATO headquarters in Brussels.
"One foot into NATO"
Signing the protocol is one of the processes for "new members" to join NATO. After the signing of the protocol, Finland and Sweden can be said to have "one foot into NATO".
At present, Finland and Sweden have gone through several major steps of submitting application letters, completing "accession" negotiations, receiving formal invitations from NATO leaders and signing the protocol of accession.
But that's not the end.
The Protocol is effectively a complement to the Washington Treaty, which, upon signature and ratification, will become part of the NATO Treaty, through which NATO will adjust its Treaty.
This step is usually more difficult. Because the protocol must be ratified by "new members" and all NATO members, it will take a long time. In the case of North Macedonia, which previously joined NATO, in February 2019, the country signed a protocol with NATO, but did not formally join until March 2020.
After all NATO member states have accepted the protocol to which the "new member" has acceded, the "new member" may join NATO in accordance with its own procedures and formally become a member of NATO by depositing the instrument of accession with the U.S. Department of State.
Will Turkey be an obstacle again?
Although Finland and Sweden have previously cooperated with NATO, and in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the process of "accession" between the two countries may be accelerated, but it is far from smooth sailing.
Infographic: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Turkey, a military power in NATO, has been one of the uncertainties.
As early as May, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would not agree to Finland and Sweden joining NATO. In the following month or so, the Turkish side repeatedly stressed that Finland and Sweden must stop supporting the PKK and other countries when seeking to join NATO, and lift restrictions on the export of defense equipment to Turkey. Turkey, Finland and Switzerland have also launched several rounds of consultations on this issue.
Things didn't turn around until the day before the NATO summit: Finland, Sweden and Turkey signed a tripartite memorandum, and Turkey confirmed its support for Finland and Sweden to join NATO.
However, even so, after the NATO summit, Turkey did not forget to "knock" the Nordic countries at all times, reminding the latter that it must abide by the agreement, otherwise, Turkey can still intervene to stop it.
What is the attitude of Russia and Ukraine?
At the beginning of Finland and Sweden's disclosure of their intention to "join the treaty", Russia said that it would not be indifferent, but it would not impulsively decide on countermeasures, but would "comprehensively analyze the new force deployment formed by the new round of NATO expansion.".
Source: Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Regarding the "accession" of the Nordic countries, Putin said that Russia's relations with Sweden and Finland do not have the same problems as Ukraine, "if you want to join, please."
The focus of Russia's attention is on NATO's military deployment. Finland has a long border with Russia of more than 1,300 kilometers, and once it joins NATO, it can directly extend NATO's sphere of influence to Russia's northwestern border. If NATO deploys military infrastructure here, Russia "will be forced to respond symmetrically."
Nor does NATO seem to have pleased Ukraine.
Recently, Ukraine, which has written its membership in the Constitution as its basic policy, has repeatedly complained that NATO has not made a gesture of support for Ukraine's accession.
Ukrainian President Zelenskiy directly expressed at the NATO summit that he hoped that all parties would adhere to the "open door policy" on the issue of Ukraine's "accession", respect Ukraine's security demands, and find a place for Ukraine in the common security space.
What does the US-led NATO think?
The United States expressed "full support" for Finland and Sweden's accession. U.S. President Joe Biden also made the usual statement that NATO's purpose is defense. The accession of Finland and Sweden will make NATO stronger. A strong, united NATO is also the foundation of U.S. national security.
Source: US President Joe Biden.
However, the Nordic countries proposed to join NATO out of security concerns, but Biden can interpret this move from "strengthening NATO" to "US national security", which seems to hint at the logic of NATO's existence.
Biden even stated in advance that he would submit a report on The entry of Finland and Switzerland into NATO to the US Congress so that Congress could quickly pass the relevant procedures at that time.
Such eagerness is the same as the NATO Secretary-General's gesture of "open arms".
The United States is in the lead, and other NATO members have also welcomed Finland and Sweden. The German foreign minister has stated that the German federal government is ready to quickly approve all the preparations for the two countries to join.
NATO, France and the United States have also said they will guarantee the security of the Nordic countries during their "transition period of accession." British Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Sweden and Finland in mid-May to reach a new security deal with the two countries.
After signing the protocol of accession, nato's secretary-general told reporters in a joint press statement with the foreign ministers of Sweden and Finland that "this is a good day for Finland and Sweden, and a good day for NATO." But what does it mean for Russia and Ukraine in conflict and for the current world to expand NATO again?