US Senate Foreign Relations Committee approves Finland & Sweden’s accession to NATO

As war rages on unabated in Eastern Europe, the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee has passed a resolution on Thursday urging the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to accept Finland and Sweden at the earliest, signalling bipartisan support for countering Russian aggression. The committee adopted the proposal supporting the two Nordic countries' admission to NATO by voice vote.

The resolution which is backing the expansion and asked other NATO governments to quickly admit the countries was passed by voice vote with no articulated opposition by Democrats and Republicans on the committee. According to an Associated Press report, the vote on Thursday has been considered to be a test of Republican lawmakers' stance on the expansion, which US President Joe Biden has favoured.

Furthermore, according to a press release from US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) as well as Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), ranking member and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, as well as Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), and Chris Coons (D-Del.) commended the committee's passing of their resolution (S.Res.646) in support of Finland and Sweden’s accession to the alliance. 

'This resolution is testament to bipartisan support for Finland & Sweden joining NATO'

Following the vote, ranking member Jim Risch said, “The committee’s unanimous passage of this resolution is a testament to the bipartisan support for Finland and Sweden joining NATO, and the urgency of strengthening the alliance amidst Russia’s unprovoked and brutal invasion of Ukraine,” as per the release. He went on to say, “I have long said that Sweden’s and Finland’s strong political and military traditions make them a perfect fit for the alliance. I hope the Senate will follow the committee’s lead and move quickly to pass this resolution.” 

Since the Kremlin's unjustified assault on Ukraine commenced on February 24, NATO has been working to deepen its alliance against Russia as the conflict has currently affected NATO member nations, The Hill reported. The strike has had an impact on the two Nordic nations, with Russian planes invading Swedish and Finnish airspace. 

As per The Hill report, with the addition of Finland and Sweden, the 30-member group intends to convey a message of solidarity to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Finland and Sweden had previously cooperated with NATO but remained strategically distinct. 

Meanwhile, with the indication of Sweden and Finland joining the NATO military alliance, the Kremlin cautioned the nations that they would face "military-technical" consequences. Russia's Foreign Ministry warned that in order to confront rising risks to its national security, Moscow would be compelled to adopt retaliatory acts of military-technical and other dimensions. 

(Image: Twitter/@Senatorrish)