French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday signed the official documents approving Finland and Sweden’s applications to become NATO members. While Macron once called the US-led military bloc “brain dead,” he has switched tack since Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine.
France’s parliament approved the enlargement proposal earlier this month, after the two Nordic nations applied to join the alliance in May. By petitioning the Western bloc for membership, both renounced their prior non-alignment, with Finland officially neutral since shortly after World War II and Sweden since the early 19th Century.
“This sovereign choice of Finland and Sweden, two European partners, will make it possible to strengthen their security in the face of the current threat in their immediate neighborhood,” read a statement from the Elysee Palace cited by AFP, with the “threat” in question presumably referencing Russia.