The Senate votes to support Finland’s and Sweden’s accession to NATO
The US Senate passed a resolution Wednesday night to support Finland and Sweden join NATO — a crucial step in the two countries’ quest to join the 30-member alliance.
The Senate voted 95-1, with Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley voting no and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., voting “present.”
MORE: Sweden applies to join NATO and joins Finland in ending non-alignment
The vote comes several weeks after the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee approved that Finland and Sweden would become members of NATO. Lawmakers worked to pass the matter before their August recess.
Finland and Sweden announced their decision to formally join NATO within days of each other in May, ending long-standing positions of neutrality in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. They simultaneously submitted their applications on May 18.
All 30 NATO members must ratify the accession of the two countries. Seven countries remain.
During Wednesday’s vote, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., took a veiled swipe at Paul and Hawley in a speech, saying, “Their accession will make NATO stronger and America safer. If any senator is looking for a defensible excuse to vote no, I wish them luck.”
Aligning himself with former President Donald Trump, Hawley said the U.S. could devote more money and firepower to NATO “or do what we need to do to deter Asia and China. We can’t do both.”
Paul has always worked to keep America out of foreign conflicts. He offered an amendment that most rejected, seeking to ensure that Congress’s role in authorizing military force would not be usurped by the NATO pact’s joint defense commitment, known as Article 5.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., applauded the Senate’s vote, says on Twitter that it is “all the more urgent [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s barbaric, immoral and unjustified war in Ukraine.”
President Joe Biden thanked a number of senators, including Schumer and McConnell, for speeding up the ratification process.
“This historic vote sends an important signal about America’s enduring, bipartisan commitment to NATO and ensuring our alliance is prepared to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow,” the president said in a statement.
The Senate votes to support Finland’s and Sweden’s accession to NATO originally appeared on abcnews.go.com