Finland and Sweden will participate in the NATO summit in Vilnius in July as the bloc’s members, Finnish President Sauli Niinisto said in an interview with the STT news service that was published on Saturday.
"If not before Vilnius, then why [should it happen] after?" he said.
He mentioned that Finland and Sweden had heard a lot of encouraging statements from NATO last spring that their entry into the alliance would be smooth, but this was not the case.
"I see that it’s a problem inside NATO. It’s clear that NATO members were also surprised," he said.
The president stated that the 28 NATO members who have already ratified have made their position clear. However, it is ultimately up to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to make the final decision.
"I don’t think he will under some circumstances yield to the pressure from society. But something could happen if bilateral relations of the US and Turkey move forward" the Finnish president said.
According to Niinisto, new Swedish legislation on terrorism, which takes effect in June, might convince Erdogan that Sweden has complied with its commitments reached the Madrid summit.
"As for the whole issue, my position is that we act in concert with Sweden and the goal is to achieve membership for both Finland and Sweden as soon as possible," the president said.
In May 2022, Helsinki and Stockholm submitted their applications to join the US-led military bloc, but the process was hampered by Turkey, which demanded that the two countries designate Kurdish organizations as terrorist groups and that Ankara hand over people suspected of and involved in terrorism. 2016 coup.
Talks between Erdogan, Niinisto, Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg took place in Madrid on June 28, 2022.
As a result, a memorandum was signed allowing Sweden and Finland to join NATO.
Follow the latest news on Google News
