“They can count on our full support,” Scholz said after his meeting with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and her Finnish counterpart Sanna Marin at the Meseberg castle outside Berlin. “We are following the debate in each country carefully, but it is of course Sweden and Finland who will decide.” 

Andersson thanked Scholz for his support. 

“This is of course an important statement, this increases Sweden’s room for movement,” she said. “The security situation requires even closer cooperation between the countries around the Baltic, within the EU, and together with our transatlantic partners.” 

She held back from giving any hint as to whether Sweden was likely to decide to join the Nato alliance. “The analysis includes future international defence partnerships, including Nato. All alternatives are still on the table,” she said. 

Andersson and Marin were in Germany to participate in a two-day meeting of Germany’s government.