Any membership bid must be agreed upon by the 30 NATO members.
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Finland and Sweden announced they would submit their applications to join NATO together on Wednesday, despite Turkey’s threat to block the expansion of the military alliance.
“I’m glad that we’re on the same path and we can do it together,” Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said Tuesday during a joint press conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto.
Finland, which shares a 1,300 km (800 mi) border with Russia and Sweden, has been disturbed by Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Their applications will eliminate decades of military disengagement in favor of joining the alliance as a defense against fearsome aggression from Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday warned that NATO expansion could trigger a response from Moscow.
But the main obstacle to Finland and Sweden’s membership comes from within the alliance, despite NATO’s Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg repeatedly insisting the two countries would be welcomed “with open arms”.
Turkey has accused Sweden and Finland of operating as a hotspot for terrorist groups, and their president insists Ankara will not approve the expansion.
Any membership bid must be agreed upon by the 30 NATO members.
Niinisto said on Tuesday that he was “optimistic” Finland and Sweden would be able to secure Turkey’s support.
And in Washington, State Department Spokesperson Ned Price also expressed confidence that Ankara would not stand in the way of its alliance joining.
“We are confident that we will be able to maintain a consensus within the coalition that strongly favors a potential Finnish and Swedish application,” he said.
Andersson and Niinisto will meet US President Joe Biden in Washington on Thursday to discuss their historic bid.
EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said the bloc had offered the bids “full support” following a meeting of EU defense ministers in Brussels.
“This will increase the number of member states that are also members of NATO. And this will strengthen and strengthen cooperation and security in Europe,” he said, noting that it was “one significant geopolitical change”.
– Growing public support –
After a marathon debate lasting a day and a half, 188 of 200 Finnish lawmakers voted in favor of NATO membership, a dramatic reversal of Finland’s policy of military non-alignment dating back to more than 75 years ago.
“Our security environment has fundamentally changed,” Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin told parliament at the start of the debate.
“The only country that threatens European security and is now openly waging a war of aggression is Russia,” she said.
Finland spent more than a century part of the Russian empire until it gained independence in 1917. It was then invaded by the Soviet Union in 1939.
According to opinion polls, more than three-quarters of Finns want to join the coalition, almost three times more than before the war in Ukraine began on February 24.
Swedish public support has also increased significantly, but remains at around 50%.
Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde signed the application on Tuesday.
The change is also dramatic in Sweden, which remained neutral throughout the Second World War and did not stay out of military alliances for more than 200 years.
– Turkey protested –
Ankara threw a wrench at the construction with their objections at the last minute.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused Helsinki and Stockholm of harboring fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, which has waged a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state.
Sweden also suspended arms sales to Turkey in 2019 because of Ankara’s military activity in neighboring Syria.
“We won’t say ‘yes’‘to those who impose sanctions for Turkey to join NATO,’ Mr Erdogan said on Monday, adding that ‘no country has taken a clear stance against terrorist organisations. “
Diplomatic sources told AFP that Turkey blocked Monday’s NATO statement in favor of Sweden and Finland becoming members.
Sweden and Finland have sent delegations to Turkey to meet with Turkish officials.
“Sweden is delighted to work with Turkey in NATO and this cooperation can be part of our bilateral relationship,” said Sweden’s Andersson, noting that Stockholm was “committed to fighting back.” all kinds of terrorism”.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in New York on Wednesday.
“Our assessment of sentiment among NATO allies and within the NATO alliance has not changed,” said Price, a State Department spokesman.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from an aggregated feed.)
