Biden Meets Sweden’s Prime Minister at White House to Back Nordic Country’s Bid to Join NATO

President Joe Biden (R) meets with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in the Oval Office on July 5, 2023. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON—President Joe Biden welcomed Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson to the White House on July 5 to voice support for the Nordic country’s NATO membership ahead of the military alliance’s historic summit next week.

Sweden has expressed a strong desire to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), citing increased security concerns following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. However, Hungary and Turkey have been the main opponents of Stockholm’s application.

During the bilateral meeting, the president referred to Sweden as a “valued friend and partner” and said its entrance into the military alliance is “very important.”

The bilateral meeting was the first between the two leaders in the White House since Mr. Biden took office.

Both leaders will participate in the upcoming NATO summit in Lithuania’s capital, Vilnius, next week. The summit, on July 11 and 12, will bring together heads of state, military officials, and diplomats from the alliance’s 31 member nations.

Mr. Kristersson thanked Mr. Biden for the invitation to Washington ahead of the summit and noted that Sweden “highly appreciates” his support for NATO membership.

This year’s summit in Vilnius comes at a critical moment, with some calling it the most important gathering since the Cold War or perhaps NATO’s founding in 1949. The member countries are expected to discuss critical global security challenges as threats from Russia and China increase.

Why Does Sweden Face Opposition?

NATO decisions are reached through a consensus-based procedure involving all member states.

Hungary’s parliament recently decided to put off ratification of Sweden’s accession bid until its autumn legislative session. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government accused Swedish politicians of telling “blatant lies” about the state of Hungarian democracy.

Turkey is also delaying approval of Sweden’s request, citing the Nordic country’s failure to resolve its security concerns.

In a recent interview, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated that Stockholm shouldn’t expect to join the alliance any time soon.

The Turkish government has accused Sweden of being overly accommodating toward certain groups, including militant Kurdish groups and people linked to a 2016 coup attempt.

Recent Quran-burning protests in Sweden have also enraged Turkey. Sweden’s leaders have condemned the act, but such protests are legal under the country’s free speech laws.

“Whether Sweden’s membership in NATO will be a burden or a benefit, in terms of a strategic and security assessment, is now more than ever open to debate,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on July 4 during a press conference.

Top diplomats from Turkey and Sweden are expected to meet at NATO’s headquarters in Brussels on July 6 to try to resolve differences.

Crucial Moment

Sweden’s accession to NATO would be a crucial moment for the country, which has shunned military alliances for more than 200 years.

Last month, Mr. Kristersson expressed his country’s desire to join NATO before or during the July summit in Vilnius.

Both Sweden and Finland resisted joining the alliance for decades, opting for neutrality and non-alignment. However, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, both countries abandoned those long-standing positions and formally requested membership in NATO.

Following months of delay, the Turkish parliament unanimously confirmed Finland’s membership on March 30, allowing Finland to become the 31st member of the military alliance in April.

While the European Union’s economic and diplomatic tools may be used to force Hungary to withdraw its opposition to Sweden’s membership, the bigger concern is Turkey, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a U.S. think tank.

“I think it would be a real failure for the alliance if it’s not able to get Sweden over the goal line here, and it’s a failure because it’s being held up by one member, Turkey,” Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia program at the CSIS, said during a press briefing about the upcoming NATO summit.

“And the alliance thus far has played very nice with Turkey.

“But you know, now the rubber is sort of hitting the road here, and it really calls into question whether this is an alliance that Turkey belongs to.”

Aside from Sweden, three more countries—Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, and Ukraine—have stated their aspirations to join NATO.

Ukraine formally applied to join the alliance last year, but it’s unlikely to join until its war with Russia ends. Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty establishes the principle of collective defense, which means that any attack on a NATO member “shall be considered an attack against them all.”

“Ukraine’s membership would essentially be tantamount to a declaration of war on Russia. So, I don’t think that’s on the cards,” Sean Monaghan, visiting fellow in the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia program at the CSIS, said during the briefing.

“But beyond NATO membership when the war ends, there is a wide spectrum of views among allies which will need to find some kind of consensus at Vilnius.”