Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan addresses members of his ruling AK Party (AKP) during a gathering on the parliament in Ankara, Turkey May 18, 2022. Murat Cetinmuhurdar/Presidential Press Office/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT
Murat Cetinmuhurdar | Reuters
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday approved Finland’s accession to NATO after months of talks, but added that discussions with Sweden will proceed.
“We’ve decided to initiate the ratification of Finland’s accession process to NATO in our parliament,” Erdogan said in Ankara, in accordance with a Reuters translation, as he met his Finnish counterpart Sauli Niinisto.
Erdogan added that he hoped the Turkish parliament would endorse Finland’s bid before the country’s May 14 elections.
In May, Finland and Sweden sent applications to affix the military alliance. They decided to place an end to their policies of neutrality and military non-alignment within the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
But the method to affix NATO has not been as smooth as some had expected, particularly with Ankara demanding more security reassurances from Sweden.
As of 2022, NATO has expanded to let in three former Soviet states and all the former Warsaw Pact countries.
Bryn Bache | CNBC
Hungary backing
Friday’s announcement paves the best way for Finland to turn into a member of NATO in the approaching months. Hungary is the one other member that has yet to approve Helsinki’s membership out of the 30 NATO nations, although the ruling party in Hungary said Friday it might back Finland at a March 27 vote.
Friday’s developments leaves Stockholm a bit behind in the method.
Turkey’s opposition to Sweden’s NATO membership centers around what, it says, is their harboring of militants from the Kurdistan Employees’ Party (PKK).
During a NATO meeting in Madrid in June 2022, Sweden, Finland and Turkey signed an agreement outlining a path to a compromise, with Ankara calling for further anti-terrorism guarantees. Chatting with CNBC in February, Sweden’s Foreign Affairs Minister Tobias Billström said his country had done its part to fulfil the agreement.
“That is only a matter of time,” he said about joining the alliance, adding he expects his nation to be a full member by July.
Former Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb played down concerns about Sweden being left behind.
“Each Finland and Sweden will turn into Nato members at the newest on the summit in July. The situation is stable. We’re already de facto members,” he said on Twitter.
—CNBC’s Natasha Turak contributed to this report.
