The majority of Swedes value their country made “many sacrifices” in order to become a member of NATO, although they admit that Sweden’s security has been strengthened by this accession, according to a poll released today.

Sweden is set to become the 32nd member of the Atlantic Alliance, ending in 200 years of military non-alignment policy.

According to a poll conducted by the Indikator institute for Swedish radio SR, 55% of Swedes estimate that the Nordic country “made a lot of sacrifices in order to join NATO”. At the same time, 77% of respondents believe that “Sweden’s security has been strengthened” with this accession.

The poll was conducted from February 4 to 26 and collected responses from 2,413 people. No question was asked about the type of sacrifices which are estimated to have been needed in order for the country to become a member of NATO.

The results show that Swedes “see the accession process as the complicated issue it has been,” Per Oleskog Trygvason, head of research at Indikator, told AFP.

“There is a very large consensus that Sweden’s security will be enhanced by the country’s NATO membership, but the road (to achieve this) has been strewn with thorns,” he says. “The Swedish government has made concessions,” abandoning some of its principles.

Stockholm, which sought to join the Atlantic alliance after Russia invaded Ukraine two years ago, abandoned its policy of neutrality after the end of the Napoleonic Wars in the 19th century, and then the non-aligned military policy after the end of the Cold War.

Although it participates in international peacekeeping missions, Sweden has not been at war since the conflict with Norway in 1814.

The country’s accession process was marked mainly from consultations with Turkeywhich accused Sweden of being soft on Kurdish fighters who had taken refuge on its soil, some of whom were considered terrorists by Ankara.

In order to satisfy Turkish demands, Stockholm amended its Constitution and passed a new anti-terror law.

They were added to the consultations with Turkey the postponements of Hungarian nationalist leader Viktor Orbán. To seal this new partnership, Hungary had previously announced the purchase of four fighter jets from Sweden to bolster its fleet which now includes 14 Gripen aircraft.