A Convincing Finnish Move: Implications for State Identity of Persuading Sweden to Jointly Bid for NATO Membership
Journal: Studia Europejskie-Studies in European Affairs
Year: 2023

This article examines the consequences for Sweden’s state identity by the decision of Finland and Sweden to apply for membership in NATO. Taking its starting point in Sweden’s shattering loss of its easternmost provinces in the 1809 Treaty of Fredrikshamn, it explores Sweden’s initial formulations of a policy of neutrality and its evolution until the end of the Cold War. The article then directs attention to how Social Democratic leaders managed to institutionalise a Swedish “active foreign poli