Finland and Sweden formally submitted their applications to join the NATO military alliance early Wednesday, ending the Nordic nations’ decades of military neutrality in the wake of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Ambassadors Klaus Korhonen of Finland and Axel Wernoff of Sweden handed their applications to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in at the alliance’s headquarters in Brussels during a brief press conference, officially initiating the membership process that could take several months to complete. “This is a good day at a critical moment in our security,” Stoltenberg said. “And I warmly welcome the requests from Finland and Sweden to join NATO.” (https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2022/05/18/brussels-Finland-Sweden-NATO-applications/6591652852929/) The 30 member states will now consider the applications in regards to their own security interests, with Stoltenberg projecting confidence during the press conference that they would work through any issues quickly.