Sweden to reject referendum on NATO membership
Residents won’t be given a choice on whether to join the bloc, PM says.
💬 “I don’t think it is an issue that is suitable for a referendum,” the Swedish leader told reporters, implying that Parliament’s support was sufficient. “There is a lot of information about national security that is confidential, so there are important issues in such a referendum that cannot be discussed and important facts that cannot be put on the table,” she explained.
Sweden does not plan to hold a referendum on the subject of NATO membership if its Parliament approves of the measure, Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson announced on Thursday, suggesting that putting the matter to a vote would be a “bad idea.” [...] Sweden and Finland are planning to simultaneously submit membership applications to NATO in mid-May, local media have reported, citing government sources. The Nordic countries’ leaders claim Russia’s invasion of Ukraine altered the “whole security landscape” of the region. Moscow, however, has warned against such a move, suggesting it will be forced to strengthen its regional defenses should NATO expand to its borders.