The Swedish Parliament yesterday approved a controversial agreement on military cooperation with the USA, reported DPA, quoted by BTA.
The pact regulates the specific conditions for an American military presence in the Scandinavian country.
Swedish television reported, citing Defense Minister Paul Jonsson, that the treaty would significantly improve the conditions for US aid in the event of a crisis or war.
In December, Stockholm and Washington struck a defense pact allowing US troops to use 17 military sites in Sweden, including airports, naval bases and ground deployment sites.
The agreement authorizes the deployment of US military personnel and equipment, as well as the organization of exercises.
Critics have expressed concern that the agreement does not address the issue of the deployment of nuclear weapons. The Swedish government responded that the Scandinavian country's position on the subject is firmly established, well known and prohibits the basing of nuclear weapons on its territory in peacetime.
Sweden, which has long followed a policy of military non-alignment, applied for NATO membership along with its neighbor Finland after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and on March 7 became a full member of the Western defense alliance, DPA said.