
The giant warship "USS KEARSARGE" is anchored in the port of Stockholm.
This giant warship filled with 26 fighter jets and 2400 sailors anchored between pleasure boats and cruise ships can not be missed by anyone.
"No one in Stockholm can miss the fact that there is this big American ship here in our city," said Micael Byden, the supreme commander of the Swedish Armed Forces, standing on the deck of the amphibious assault ship.
In this always neutral country, which is suddenly not so neutral, the USS KEARSARGE, which emerged just two weeks after Sweden and Finland announced their intention to seek NATO membership, is the promise of what this membership would bring: protection if President Vladimir Putin turns his anger on his Nordic neighbors.
But the ship is also a warning to Sweden and Finland of their possible obligations if a conflict arises, as General Mark Milley, America's top military commander, made clear during a visit on Saturday, writes the NY Times.
Sweden's Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, speaking at a news conference on the ship next to General Milley, tried to emphasize NATO's defensive nature.