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27/04/2020

Sweden and Finland's neutrality, similarities, differences and future.- Alejandro Mackinlay.

The new security situation created along Russia's borders, after the events in Ukraine in spring 2014, has profoundly affected the perception of security throughout the Baltic-Nordic region and thus opening the debate on whether the two non-aligned Nordic nations should join the Atlantic Alliance. However, the reasons that led to the policy of neutrality, and later on of non-alignment, of both are based on different grounds, as of their today security environments differ too. Both nations evolved from a strict neutrality to a relative non-alignment in the context of post-Cold War situation, something which was mainly driven by their EU membership and partnership with NATO. Now, with an assertive Russia, the eventual accession of Sweden and Finland to the North Atlantic Alliance represents an opportunity to strengthen their defence, with important budget savings to the cost of rebuilding their nowadays weak independent defence capabilities, although at an undeniable geopolitical cost.

Document written by: Alejandro Mackinlay. Commander.

Note: The full document is only available in Spanish.

 

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