NATO Director General Jens Stoltenberg has stated that the alliance would guarantee the security of Sweden if the country decides to apply to join the alliance, with an increased military presence in the Baltic sea.

NATO Chief Stoltenberg assured Swedes that if the country applies to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, the alliance would provide security guarantees during the application process and transition.

“There are different ways to do it. But I am convinced that we will find solutions for the security needs Sweden will have in a transition period from the time Sweden applies until it becomes a member,” Stoltenberg told Swedish broadcaster SVT.

“We should remember that the moment Sweden may seek, and NATO says that they want Sweden to join, lies a very strong obligation from NATO to be able to guarantee Sweden’s security. We have different ways of marking it, including through the increased presence of NATO and NATO forces in the area around Sweden and the Baltic Sea,” he added.

Stoltenberg also reiterated his previous comments that both Sweden and Finland could be fast-tracked for NATO membership saying, “We want to get a quick conclusion for the process itself. It would be a strong sign of a political desire to take Sweden’s security needs very seriously.”

Sweden’s possible joining of NATO has been sparked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and Russia has expressed hostility toward the country joining the alliance, promising consequences should both Sweden and Finland become NATO members, going as far as to threaten the deployment of nuclear weapons in the Baltic region.

While no formal decision to apply to join NATO has been made yet by either Sweden or Finland, both countries are expected to make decisions on the issue in the coming weeks, prior to a NATO summit that is scheduled to be held next month in June.

Finnish President Sauli Niinistö commented on the issue last month saying, “The security situation in Europe and Finland is more serious and difficult to predict than at any time since the Cold War. The change is estimated to be long-lasting.”

Sweden, meanwhile, is expected to release a report on NATO membership next week after pushing up the release of the report by two weeks last month.

Sweden’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ann Linde, also stated that if Finland were to decide to apply, it would also have an impact on Sweden’s decision.

Follow Chris Tomlinson on Twitter at @TomlinsonCJ or email at ctomlinson(at)breitbart.com.