(OTTAWA) Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said Canada is “strongly supportive” of Sweden and Finland joining NATO.
Posted at 8:57 p.m.
Each of the countries has expressed interest in being part of the defensive military alliance since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February.
Finland’s parliament could make a decision at the end of May, followed by Sweden in subsequent weeks, ahead of the June 29-30 NATO summit in Madrid, Spain.
Russia has warned countries against joining, with officials saying it would not help stability in Europe and that Russia would respond with retaliatory measures that would have “military and political consequences” for Helsinki and Stockholm.
President Vladimir Putin said Ukraine’s refusal to promise not to join NATO was among the reasons for the invasion.
Finland shares the longest border in the European Union with Russia, at 1340 kilometres.
Last week, the Finnish government released a security report aimed at elected officials addressing the pros and cons of possible membership, focusing on supply threats, economic consequences, cybersecurity and hybrid threats. .
Sweden’s ruling party has launched a review of security policy options. The final report is expected on May 31.
Canada, under former Prime Minister Stephen Harper, backed Ukraine’s entry into the NATO alliance at its 2008 summit, but that bid was blocked.
In early April, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took former German and French leaders — Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy — to task for preventing his country from joining NATO.
Membership could have shielded Ukraine from future Russian attacks under the alliance’s Article 5 collective defense guarantee.
With information from Associated Press