Is this the birth of a Nordic Nato?

In the past six weeks, Finland and Sweden’s security policies have changed more than they have over the past six decades. In much of what they do, the two countries come as a couple and were militarily neutral during the Cold War – but their defence cooperation has only deepened since Russia’s invasion of Crimea in 2014. Now, the two are about to break with their long history of non-alignment. Their applications to join Nato are likely to come in the next two months.

At a press conference in Stockholm this week, the prime ministers of the two countries – Sanna Marin and Magdalena Andersson – came close to admitting they want their countries to join the western military alliance. That declaration cannot be understated. Sweden has been neutral since the time of the Napoleonic wars and prided itself on its non-alignment. Finland’s situation is more complex, not least because of its geography. It became independent from Russia in 1917 and after its war with the Soviet Union in 1939-40, the country was practically forced into isolation.