Russia will take retaliatory measures against Sweden’s NATO membership

Moscow: Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Russia will closely monitor Sweden’s activities after joining NATO and will take necessary action accordingly. “We will monitor what Sweden does by joining NATO and make further preparations based on that,” Zakharova said on Wednesday. Zakharova said Moscow will take necessary measures to prevent every threat to Russia’s national security, Xinhua news agency reported. He said that Sweden’s policy of non-alignment till now was helpful in maintaining stability in Northern Europe. Zakharova said that NATO membership would weaken Sweden’s sovereignty. It is noteworthy that the Hungarian Parliament on Monday approved Sweden’s request to join NATO, clearing the way for Sweden to join NATO.