Brussels (dpa) - Representatives of the 30 member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) have signed the accession protocols necessary to invite Sweden and Finland to join the alliance, several diplomats told German News Agency (dpa).

The accession protocols allow NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg to officially invite Sweden and Finland to join the alliance.

The invitation to join must still be ratified by each NATO member country with legislative approval of the accession protocols, a process that is a task for the country's parliaments, and is expected to take six to eight months.