USA: Prior to the upcoming NATO summit in July, the US is eager to welcome Sweden as a member and will push Turkey and Hungary to ratify membership, according to US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, who was in Sweden on Wednesday.

In May of last year, Sweden and Finland both submitted applications to join NATO. This month, Finland joined the alliance as the 31st member after its application was processed in a record amount of time. Turkiye and Hungary have not yet ratified Sweden as a member, preventing Sweden's accession.

As the 32nd (member of NATO), Sweden will be soon be welcomed. To be clear, we hope that will happen before the July summit," Austin said at a press conference.

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"We urge Hungary and Turkey, two of our allies, to approve Sweden's membership as soon as possible. Austin was in Sweden to discuss the conflict in Ukraine and Sweden's NATO membership with Defence Minister Pal Jonson.

The visit of Austin, which included a tour of the Musko underground naval base, was described by Sweden's defence minister as a sign of American commitment to Sweden's security "on a bilateral basis" and an occasion for Sweden to demonstrate its military prowess.

A naval dockyard, workshops, offices, warehouses, and a hospital were all unearthed during the 1950s and 1960s from deep beneath the rocks of Musko island.

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It was made to support Sweden's warships and submarines, which are surrounded by hundreds of metres of rock and protected from enemy attack.

The visit of the US defence secretary also falls during Aurora 23, Sweden's largest military exercise in over 25 years.

Along with troops from the UK, Finland, Poland, Norway, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Denmark, Austria, Germany, and France, about 700 US marines will participate in the exercise.

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Around 26,000 military members will participate in exercises in land, sea, and airspace around Sweden. The Aurora training sessions last until May 11.