When Sweden joins NATO, it will help the alliance redress its vulnerability in northwest Europe – the Baltic Sea, a shared waterway with Russia with a bottleneck for access to ports in eight states including Germany read more .
Sweden's key to keeping the waters navigable in a conflict is its world-leading submarine fleet, which analysts say holds some of the most advanced conventional submarines ever built.
"The Swedish submarine fleet is well prepared for this environment and will add greatly to NATO's overall submarine capabilities in the Baltic," a NATO official told Reuters.
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