Nato's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said he "didn't expect" Sweden and Finland to join the alliance during his tenure but described their recent inclusion, spurred by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, as a "great" decision that has strengthened their security.
Mr Stoltenberg was speaking minutes before Sweden's flag was raised at Nato headquarters in Brussels during a rain-lashed ceremony on Monday, four days after the Scandinavian country formally became the alliance's 32nd member.
"I'm very honoured to be the Secretary General that has facilitated the membership for these two countries," Mr Stoltenberg told reporters, speaking alongside the Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson.
"But I didn't expect at all that Finland and Sweden was going to be a member during my tenure as Secretary General of Nato. And then of course, this changed totally with the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. And since then, things really moved very quickly," said Mr Stoltenberg, who is expected to step down later this year after a decade in the job.
Currently the most likely candidate to succeed Mr Stoltenberg is the caretaker Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
"After more than 200 years of military non-alignment, this is a historic step," said Mr Kristersson as his country's yellow and blue flag was prepared to be raised between those of Spain and Turkey.
In a signal of the broad support in Sweden for accession to Nato, the ceremony was attended by Sweden's Crown Princess Victoria as well as members of the Swedish cabinet and the leaders of the country's six main political parties.
"The Russian brutal full-scale invasion against Ukraine united Sweden behind the common conclusion that a full-fledged nation membership is the only reasonable choice," said Mr Kristersson.
"Our territory is located at the crossroads of northern Europe and we are ready to do our part all across the Euro-Atlantic area," said Mr Kristersson. "We bring with us some unique capabilities. Our armed forces are modern and well-trained on land, in the air and at sea."
As of January, Sweden has met the Nato standard of devoting 2 per cent of its GDP to defence spending, added Mr Kristersson, who lauded "Sweden's defence industrial base".
"Sweden will be a safer country in Nato and Nato will be a stronger alliance with Sweden in it," said Mr Kristersson.
The only criteria for a country to join Nato is whether its membership makes the alliance stronger. The inclusion of Sweden, nearly one year after its Nordic neighbour Finland, is widely viewed as a boost for the alliance as the two countries share strong military capabilities and geographical proximity to Russia.
Sweden and Finland applied to join Nato together in May 2022. Turkey and Hungary held up negotiations on Sweden's accession, which required unanimity from all members of the alliance.
Sweden's accession to Nato will likely come as a relief to European members of the alliance who have expressed fears that US support for Nato might be weakened should Donald Trump win this year's presidential election.
Eastern European countries in particular are pushing hard for their allies to increase defence spending, with Polish President Andrzej Duda expected to propose that Nato member states raise the minimum level of defence spending from 2 to 3 per cent of economic output in his talks with US President Joe Biden.
Mr Trump has said he told a Nato ally during his presidency that he would encourage Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to countries that didn’t meet the alliance’s defence spending obligations. His comments triggered a sharp rebuke from Mr Stoltenberg, who said such comments undermine all allies' security.
Comments such as a recent call by Pope Francis for Ukraine to negotiate with Russia and have the courage "to raise the white flag" have provoked outrage, particularly in Ukraine.
Mr Stoltenberg said a negotiated peace was possible, but only if the Russian President Vladimir Putin pulls his forces back.
"President Putin started this war and he could end it today. But Ukraine does not have this option. Surrender is not peace," said Mr Stoltenberg.
"We must continue to strengthen Ukraine to show President Putin that he will not get what he wants on the battlefield, but must sit down and negotiate a solution."
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Results:
Men's wheelchair 800m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 1.44.79; 2. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 1.45.88; 3. Isaac Towers (GBR) 1.46.46.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
FIXTURES
Nov 04-05: v Western Australia XI, Perth
Nov 08-11: v Cricket Australia XI, Adelaide
Nov 15-18 v Cricket Australia XI, Townsville (d/n)
Nov 23-27: 1ST TEST v AUSTRALIA, Brisbane
Dec 02-06: 2ND TEST v AUSTRALIA, Adelaide (d/n)
Dec 09-10: v Cricket Australia XI, Perth
Dec 14-18: 3RD TEST v AUSTRALIA, Perth
Dec 26-30 4TH TEST v AUSTRALIA, Melbourne
Jan 04-08: 5TH TEST v AUSTRALIA, Sydney
Note: d/n = day/night
EU Russia
The EU imports 90 per cent of the natural gas used to generate electricity, heat homes and supply industry, with Russia supplying almost 40 per cent of EU gas and a quarter of its oil.
Museum of the Future in numbers
- 78 metres is the height of the museum
- 30,000 square metres is its total area
- 17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
- 14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
- 1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
- 7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
- 2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
- 100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
- Dh145 is the price of a ticket
UAE squad
Esha Oza (captain), Al Maseera Jahangir, Emily Thomas, Heena Hotchandani, Indhuja Nandakumar, Katie Thompson, Lavanya Keny, Mehak Thakur, Michelle Botha, Rinitha Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Siya Gokhale, Sashikala Silva, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish (wicketkeeper) Udeni Kuruppuarachchige, Vaishnave Mahesh.
UAE tour of Zimbabwe
All matches in Bulawayo
Friday, Sept 26 – First ODI
Sunday, Sept 28 – Second ODI
Tuesday, Sept 30 – Third ODI
Thursday, Oct 2 – Fourth ODI
Sunday, Oct 5 – First T20I
Monday, Oct 6 – Second T20I
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
The five pillars of Islam
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EElmawkaa%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hub71%2C%20Abu%20Dhabi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ebrahem%20Anwar%2C%20Mahmoud%20Habib%20and%20Mohamed%20Thabet%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PropTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24400%2C000%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E500%20Startups%2C%20Flat6Labs%20and%20angel%20investors%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2012%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Directed by: Craig Gillespie
Starring: Emma Stone, Emma Thompson, Joel Fry
4/5
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Off-roading in the UAE: How to checklist
INDIA V SOUTH AFRICA
First Test: October 2-6, at Visakhapatnam
Second Test: October 10-14, at Maharashtra
Third Test: October 19-23, at Ranchi
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Awar Qalb
Director: Jamal Salem
Starring: Abdulla Zaid, Joma Ali, Neven Madi and Khadija Sleiman
Two stars
Ten10 Cricket League
Venue and schedule Sharjah Cricket Stadium, December 14 to 17
Teams
Maratha Arabians Leading player: Virender Sehwag; Top picks: Mohammed Amir, Imad Wasim; UAE players: Shaiman Anwar, Zahoor Khan
Bengal Lions Leading player: Sarfraz Ahmed; Top picks: Sunil Narine, Mustafizur Rahman; UAE players: Mohammed Naveed, Rameez Shahzad
Kerala Kings Leading player: Eoin Morgan; Top picks: Kieron Pollard, Sohail Tanvir; UAE players: Rohan Mustafa, Imran Haider
Pakhtoons Leading player: Shahid Afridi; Top picks: Fakhar Zaman, Tamim Iqbal; UAE players: Amjad Javed, Saqlain Haider
Punjabi Legends Leading player: Shoaib Malik; Top picks: Hasan Ali, Chris Jordan; UAE players: Ghulam Shabber, Shareef Asadullah
Team Sri Lanka Cricket Will be made up of Colombo players who won island’s domestic limited-overs competition
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