The US believes Sweden should be in NATO

US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said that Sweden should become a NATO member as soon as possible, despite the Quran desecration rally in Stockholm the day before.

Yevropeiska Pravda, said this at a briefing on Wednesday, commenting on the possible impact of the action on Sweden's accession to NATO.

According to the State Department spokesman, Sweden has fulfilled its obligations under the trilateral memorandum agreed with Finland and Turkey on the sidelines of the Madrid summit last year.

"We believe that Sweden is a strong, capable defense partner that shares NATO's values and will strengthen the Alliance and contribute to European security, and we continue to believe that Sweden should become a NATO member as soon as possible," Patel said.

The State Department spokesman added that the United States continues to urge Hungary and Turkey to ratify Sweden's accession protocol without delay. At the same time, he called the burning of the Quran disrespectful and offensive.

"We have consistently said that the burning of religious texts is disrespectful and offensive, and what may be legal is not necessarily appropriate. I will therefore let the Swedish government and local law enforcement agencies speak more specifically and in more detail about this incident," Patel emphasized.

Author - Olena Madiak, 29/06/2023