Sweden and Finland are pushing into NATO. However, their accession depends largely on the approval of Turkish President Erdogan. He ties the expansion to conditions that he sees as not yet being adequately met.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has again called for the implementation of several measures in view of the northward expansion of Sweden and Finland. According to the Turkish Ministry of Communications, after a meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Erdogan said that the timing of approval for accession depends on the steps taken in the countries.
Turkey and Hungary are the only countries yet to ratify the accession of Sweden and Finland. All NATO members must agree to enlargement. According to a statement by the defense alliance, Stoltenberg emphasized at the meeting that the admission of the two countries “will make NATO stronger”.
The day before, after a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, Stoltenberg said it was time to “welcome Finland and Sweden as full members of NATO”. Both countries have implemented the promises made in an agreement in June.
At the time, Turkey blocked the start of the admission negotiations on the grounds that both countries supported actors that Turkey viewed as terrorist organizations. A temporary abandonment of the blockade after the agreement later gave way to renewed threats of a veto from Ankara. Erdogan plans to receive Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Turkey on Tuesday.
