Enlargement to the North? Sweden, Finland

Sweden and Finland are moving closer and closer to NATO, though without seeking full membership to date. Nor will this change before the parliamentary elections in 2018 and 2019. For NATO, the admission of the Nordic Europeans would be uncomplicated and would carry many advantages, above all for Nordic-Baltic security, but also regarding topics such as NATO-EU cooperation and the Open Door Policy. Despite certain risks (above all Russia’s foreseeable reaction), Germany could gain two critical and reliable partners in NATO.