Finland's Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, left, Sweden's Foreign Minister Ann Linde, right, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attend a media conference after the signature of the NATO Accession Protocols for Finland and Sweden in the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Tuesday, July 5, 2022. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)
Belgium NATO Finland Sweden
BRUSSELS (AP) — The 30 NATO allies have signed off on the accession protocols for Sweden and Finland, sending the membership bids of the two nations to the alliance capitals for legislative approvals. The move further increases Russia’s strategic isolation in the wake of its invasion of neighboring Ukraine in February and military struggles there since. The 30 ambassadors are to formally approve the decisions of last week’s NATO summit when the alliance made the historic decision to invite the two to join the military club.
