Why is Sweden left behind in the Nordic NATO bid?

After decades of staying out of military alliances, last May Finland and neighbouring Sweden announced bids to join NATO following Russia’s February invasion of Ukraine.

With Turkey becoming the final and 30th member to ratify Finland’s bid on Thursday, the Finns are expected to finalise their membership in the coming days, while Sweden continues to face opposition.

Finland President Sauli Niinistö tweeted after Turkey’s decision: “We look forward to welcoming Sweden to join us as soon as possible.”

Here are five things to know about the two countries’ membership bids, and why Sweden’s bid is lagging.

Why did two Nordic states make historic U-turn?

For decades, most Swedes and Finns were in favour of maintaining their policies of military non-alignment.

However, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year sparked sharp U-turns.

The change was especially dramatic in Finland, which shares a 1,300km (800-mile) border with Russia.

Prior to the application, public support for NATO membership had remained steady at 20-30 percent for two decades, but a February poll suggested 82 percent were happy with the decision to join the alliance, according to the AFP news agency.

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