US Senate votes overwhelmingly in favour of Sweden and Finland joining NATO
- Just after midnight Swedish time, the US Senate voted in favour of ratifying Finland and Sweden’s application to join the transatlantic alliance NATO.
- 95 of the 97 senators present in the chamber voted yes, with one abstention and just one no vote from Josh Hawley, a Republican senator from Missouri.
- Dag Blanck, a professor of North American Studies at Uppsala University, says Hawley’s argument was that the US should focus more on China, rather than Russia.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Canada’s NORAD upgrades a ‘good move’ for northern security, says Nunavut MP, CBC News
Finland: Finland, Sweden take huge step toward NATO membership, The Associated Press
Greenland: Denmark, Faroe Islands agree to establish air surveillance radar to bolster gaps in Arctic surveillance, Eye on the Arctic
Iceland: Arctic security discussed at Reykjavik Northern Group meeting, Eye on the Arctic
Norway: Defence minister says Norway must get stronger in the North, The Independent Barents Observer
Russia: Strengthen border to Nordic countries, says secretary of Russia’s Security Council, The Independent Barents Observer
Sweden: Turkey green lights Sweden and Finland’s NATO application, Radio Sweden
United States: U.S. Army poised to revamp Alaska forces to prep for Arctic fight, The Associated Press
