US President Joe Biden on Tuesday confirmed Finland and Sweden's accession to NATO, saying the alliance had demonstrated that commitment to a peaceful Europe was possible, and promised to work to strengthen the alliance's eastern front, denouncing attempts by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to "undermine" it.
Before signing the ratification decision, Biden spoke to reporters at the White House, and said that he would ratify Finland and Sweden's accession to the most powerful alliance in the world, considering that they had decided to achieve more security and stability in the entire world.
Biden emphasized that Sweden and Finland have strong militaries, and that they meet all NATO requirements.
Biden added, "We must deter the dangers before they harm our people and our partners. With our allies and partners, we will chart the future we want to see, and together we will face any aggression or threat of aggression."
Biden considered that NATO has demonstrated that commitment to a Europe that is complete, free and living in peace is possible, stressing that all NATO countries are committed to the fifth article of the alliance's charter, and that its doors are open to all countries that meet the conditions for joining it.
The US president added, "We are working with our partners to strengthen the eastern front of NATO, and we will be able to meet the new challenges in Europe," noting that Putin wanted to undermine NATO, but he got two new members in the alliance, as he put it.
Biden saw that the strength of NATO and the commitment of the United States to the alliance is stronger than before, stressing that his country "will draw with its allies and partners the future that we want to see," according to him.
The US president has also promised to take steps this year to make his country stronger.
Last Thursday, 95 members of the US Senate voted in favor of Finland and Sweden joining NATO, against one vote against, although the approval was sufficient to obtain a two-thirds majority, which is 67 votes.
The Kremlin has previously announced that the Russian Defense Ministry is studying response options if the NATO infrastructure is deployed near the Russian border, after Sweden and Finland were included in the alliance.
Putin had warned that Russia would have to respond in kind if military units and military infrastructure were deployed in the two countries, describing NATO as a tool of the Cold War and an expression of US foreign policy.