Brussels, May 18, (dpa/GNA) – The Swedish and Finnish ambassadors, formally submitted their countries’ NATO applications to Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, in an online video ceremony on Wednesday in Brussels.

Accepting the applications at NATO headquarters, Stoltenberg said the move was a “historic step” in a “critical moment” for European security.

Finland and Sweden jointly set the course for NATO membership, against the backdrop of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, after a groundswell of public support accelerated the move.

Both countries are close partners of NATO but have attempted to balance security concerns with close neighbour Russia. Finland shares a 1,300-kilometre-long border with Russia, while Sweden is traditionally neutral.

Despite initial protests, Moscow has played down the membership bid, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stating on Tuesday that “there is probably not much difference” as Finland and Sweden have taken part previously in NATO military exercises.

Stoltenberg said the alliance would assess the membership bid as quickly as possible, but the security interests of all allies “have to be taken into account,” referring to recent objections from Turkey.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday he could not agree to the accession of two countries that have sanctioned his country and repeated allegations that both nations support “terrorist organizations,” a reference to the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Kurdish militia People’s Defence Units (YPG) in Syria.

Turkey considers the YPG and PKK as linked terrorist groups and existential threats to its national security, often clashing with them along its Syria and Iraq border.

In response to a Turkish military offensive against the YPG in 2019, Sweden, Finland and Germany, among others, ceased part of arms exports to Turkey.

Turkey could use its NATO card to push allies to label the Syrian YPG as a terrorist organization, while a clampdown on alleged PKK activities in Sweden is also on Turkey’s agenda, Soner Cagaptay of the Washington Institute argued with dpa.

Achieving such, however, will not be easy for Ankara, as it already lacks solidarity in NATO when it comes to the PKK and the YPG according to Mustafa Aydin of Istanbul’s Kadir Has University.

Ankara has little chance to get major Western concessions, as the latest NATO expansion is “already sponsored by the US,” says former ambassador Uluç Özülker.

Finnish and Swedish diplomats plan to travel to Ankara to discuss commitments in the fight against terrorism and potential arms deals, among others.

Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlüt Çavusoglu, is separately scheduled to meet his US counterpart Antony Blinken in New York on Wednesday, according to Turkish state news agency Anadolu.

Should Turkey drop its objections, the accession of Sweden and Finland would be smooth. Accession protocols could be signed in June, clearing the way for the ratification procedures. That means the Nordic countries could be NATO members by the end of the year. Their application must be approved by all 30 NATO states.
GNA

Brussels, May 18, (dpa/GNA) – The Swedish and Finnish ambassadors, formally submitted their countries’ NATO applications to Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, in an online video ceremony on Wednesday in Brussels.

Accepting the applications at NATO headquarters, Stoltenberg said the move was a “historic step” in a “critical moment” for European security.

Finland and Sweden jointly set the course for NATO membership, against the backdrop of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, after a groundswell of public support accelerated the move.

Both countries are close partners of NATO but have attempted to balance security concerns with close neighbour Russia. Finland shares a 1,300-kilometre-long border with Russia, while Sweden is traditionally neutral.

Despite initial protests, Moscow has played down the membership bid, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stating on Tuesday that “there is probably not much difference” as Finland and Sweden have taken part previously in NATO military exercises.

Stoltenberg said the alliance would assess the membership bid as quickly as possible, but the security interests of all allies “have to be taken into account,” referring to recent objections from Turkey.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday he could not agree to the accession of two countries that have sanctioned his country and repeated allegations that both nations support “terrorist organizations,” a reference to the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Kurdish militia People’s Defence Units (YPG) in Syria.

Turkey considers the YPG and PKK as linked terrorist groups and existential threats to its national security, often clashing with them along its Syria and Iraq border.

In response to a Turkish military offensive against the YPG in 2019, Sweden, Finland and Germany, among others, ceased part of arms exports to Turkey.

Turkey could use its NATO card to push allies to label the Syrian YPG as a terrorist organization, while a clampdown on alleged PKK activities in Sweden is also on Turkey’s agenda, Soner Cagaptay of the Washington Institute argued with dpa.

Achieving such, however, will not be easy for Ankara, as it already lacks solidarity in NATO when it comes to the PKK and the YPG according to Mustafa Aydin of Istanbul’s Kadir Has University.

Ankara has little chance to get major Western concessions, as the latest NATO expansion is “already sponsored by the US,” says former ambassador Uluç Özülker.

Finnish and Swedish diplomats plan to travel to Ankara to discuss commitments in the fight against terrorism and potential arms deals, among others.

Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlüt Çavusoglu, is separately scheduled to meet his US counterpart Antony Blinken in New York on Wednesday, according to Turkish state news agency Anadolu.

Should Turkey drop its objections, the accession of Sweden and Finland would be smooth. Accession protocols could be signed in June, clearing the way for the ratification procedures. That means the Nordic countries could be NATO members by the end of the year. Their application must be approved by all 30 NATO states.
GNA