Blinken hands to NATO US certification of Finland, Sweden accession
1 Min Read
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken completes the final step in the US ratification process for Finland and Sweden to join NATO. .
-
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he had handed over documentation to NATO on the US certification of Finland and Sweden's entry to the alliance. This was reported by RIA Novosti that cited Blinken's Twitter account.
Today I deposited the U.S. Instruments of Ratification with the Depositary for the North Atlantic Treaty, as the last step in the U.S. ratification process for Finland and Sweden to join @NATO. pic.twitter.com/jWu4kgvnoU
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) August 18, 2022
The documents were handed over as the final stage in the United States ratification of Finland and Sweden, according to him.
US President Joe Biden signed ratification documents on August 9, approving Finland and Sweden's accession to NATO, bringing the countries one step closer to officially abandoning their long-standing neutrality allegedly in response to the Russian war in Ukraine.
"It was and is a watershed moment, I believe, in the alliance, and for the greater security and stability not only of Europe and the United States but of the world," Biden said during remarks prior to signing the documents.
According to Biden, the two northern European countries would become "strong, reliable highly capable new allies" by making the "sacred commitment" to mutual defense in the US-led transatlantic alliance.
