Majority of people in Sweden are in favor of joining NATO

AFP cites a new poll that shows that the majority of people in Sweden are in favor of joining NATO. The poll, carried out by polling institute Novus, showed that 51% of Swedes were in favor of joining the military alliance. The results come as Sweden’s ruling party, the Social Democrats, prepares for a debate on whether the country should join NATO. 

In neighboring Finland, the issue of Nato membership is currently being mulled by MPs following the publication of a government-commissioned “white paper” last week. Novus chief executive, Torbjorn Sjostrom, said "Swedish opinion in favor of joining Nato is increasing because they believe it will be done together with Finland."

If Finland were to join the alliance, 64% of Swedes questioned said they were in favor of joining.

This development comes after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. 

Meanwhile, Russia on 24th February launched the war on Ukraine. And, according to the latest updates, Volodymyr Zelensky has said the situation in Mariupol is deteriorating with roughly 1,000 civilians remaining trapped in the Azovstal steel plant with the remaining fighters who are heavily outnumbered. However, Ramzan Kadyrov, an ally of Vladimir Putin, said he believed Russian forces would be in complete control of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol “before lunchtime, or after lunch” on Thursday. Also, Ukraine is working to convince western allies to shift Russia’s shipments of natural gas from the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to Ukraine’s pipeline, increasing Kyiv’s leverage, energy officials told Reuters. And US President Joe Biden is set to announce plans on Thursday to send additional military aid to help Ukraine fight back against the Russian invasion, according to a US official.