Asked if the United States would send troops to support Sweden and Finland if they were attacked before they formally joined NATO, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby replied: “I don’t want to discuss hypothetical possibilities. So.”

In an interview with the BBC, he praised the Finnish and Swedish armed forces, noting that “it is very convenient for the Pentagon to cooperate with them, especially during occasional joint exercises.”

Kirby said: “If they require any additional capacity or support during their application and NATO accession process, the United States is confident that we maintain a level of cooperation with these two countries that allows us to provide additional support to them as needed.” . He expressed Washington’s conviction that the accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO represents a sovereign right for them, “no country has a right of veto in this matter.”