Turkey sees progress in NATO accession Sweden and Finland: “We will use any platform to tackle the problem”

Turkey has certified Sweden and Finland as “progress” regarding both countries’ NATO accession. In a statement published in Stockholm on Friday, the three countries congratulate each other “for the intensification of cooperation (…) and the progress made by Finland and Sweden in complying with the Memorandum”. The latter was signed in June on the margins of the NATO summit in Madrid.

“Sweden has fully respected the Trilateral Memorandum and is moving closer to NATO,” Swedish negotiator Oscar Stenstrom said after the Stockholm meeting announced by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan earlier this month.

After the Russian attack on Ukraine, Sweden and Finland broke with their decades-long tradition of military alliance neutrality and applied for NATO membership in May. Each of the 30 NATO member states must ratify accession. Only Hungary and Turkey have yet to agree.

Turkey threatened with a blockade

Turkey has threatened to block NATO membership if the two countries fail to respond to Ankara’s demands. Ankara, in particular, accuses Sweden of being a haven for “terrorists” related to members of the outlawed Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK).

During a visit to Ankara in early November, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson promised to comply with Turkish demands. In mid-November, the Swedish parliament voted in favor of a constitutional amendment to tighten anti-terror laws. The change takes effect on January 1. (aeg/sda/afp)