Middle School Contribution: Finland and Sweden May Join NATO

By Aidan Lutz ‘27 
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), an important military and economic organization of Western nations, has recently added the Republic of Finland to their ranks and may also soon have the Kingdom of Sweden join in addition. 

With the Russo-Ukrainian War having persisted for over a year, global positions on neutrality have shifted since February of 2022 at the start of the war, with Finland and Sweden, both historically neutral countries, joining NATO as a result of the debate on countries’ level of involvement in the war. Finland, with their renowned military, would be a major boost to NATO, while Sweden, neutral since 1815, would completely change European geopolitics by joining the organization.
NATO would also increase its geographic control over European waters. While NATO already has many ways to control its adversaries’ (mainly Russia) navies, the addition of Sweden and Finland’s waters in the Baltic Sea, along with their own accompanying navies, would make it extremely easy for NATO sanctions such as those put in place resulting from the Russo-Ukrainian war to restrict Russia from most naval trade in the Atlantic.
These nations’ militaries are most important in considering the long term impact of their addition to NATO. While Sweden’s military has had little recent combat experience, it falls in the middle compared to the size of other European militaries, and has a strong military-industrial complex, with many armament companies like Saab and a BAE Systems branch being based there. With NATO spending much of its stockpile on helping Ukraine, the addition of more munitions will be crucial for not only helping Ukraine, but also allowing the organization to maintain a strong presence in Europe. 
The Finnish, although neutral, have kept their military ready for action since their last war against the Russians during the 1940s. While their industrial side is not as strong as Sweden’s, Finland is a leader in cold-weather innovation, with the Finnish being renowned for their ability to fight in winter. Finland is also extremely prepared for war, as demonstrated by the capital city of Helsinki’s extensive bunker system, which can hold more than the city’s population. 
With these new members, Russia will only become more isolated and cut off from the rest of the world, and will struggle even more with trade and population decline.