Turkey agrees with the principle of NATO expansion, like all other countries of the alliance, Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said in connection with the issue of Finland and Sweden joining NATO.
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“There is a very broad consensus among member states, and Turkey also agrees with the principle of open doors. Turkey is trying to discuss some bilateral issues with Finland and Sweden, asking for guarantees,” the Italian diplomat said on the Rai3 TV channel.
According to Di Maio, now he is waiting for the acceleration of the process of NATO expansion. “There is an almost unanimous desire that (Sweden and Finland) join as soon as possible, this would strengthen our entire defensive alliance,” the minister said.
Earlier, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said that Ankara is following the process around the accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO and cannot yet look at it positively. Later, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that he had met with colleagues from Finland and Sweden and informed them about Ankara’s expectations for their membership in NATO.
Cavusoglu: Turkey adamant on Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership
Finland and Sweden started talking about the possibility of abandoning their long-term neutrality and joining NATO against the backdrop of the Russian military operation in Ukraine. The head of the alliance, Jens Stoltenberg, noted that the alliance would be glad to see Finland and Sweden in its ranks and provide them with the opportunity to quickly join. NATO expects these countries to make their own decisions about possible membership in the coming “months and weeks,” US Permanent Representative to NATO Julianne Smith said. She added that the United States would welcome the accession of these countries to the alliance.
Russia has repeatedly noted that NATO aims at confrontation. Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov stated that further expansion of the alliance would not bring greater security to Europe, NATO has an aggressive character. At the same time, he noted that he did not consider the possible entry of Sweden and Finland into NATO an existential threat to Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a conversation with his Finnish counterpart Sauli Niinistö, noted that abandoning the traditional policy of military neutrality would be erroneous, since there are no threats to Finland’s security. In his opinion, a change in the country’s foreign policy could have a negative impact on Russian-Finnish relations, which for many years have been built in the spirit of good neighborliness and partnership cooperation, and were mutually beneficial.
New NATO strategy to contain Russia, Blinken says .
Sweden and Finland proposed to work with Turkey on the "security guarantees" that Ankara has demanded over their plans to join NATO, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Sunday.
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Turkey has been supporting the open-door policy of NATO, but Finland and Sweden's membership bid raises security concerns for Ankara, Cavusoglu told Turkish reporters in Berlin after a NATO meeting.
Countries that "come in contact with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) must abandon their stance," state-run TRT broadcaster quoted the minister as saying.
These countries also impose export restrictions on Turkey in the defense industry, he said, adding that export bans should be lifted if they seek membership in NATO.
Cavusoglu had a tripartite meeting with his Swedish counterpart Ann Linde and Finnish counterpart Pekka Haavisto in Berlin on Saturday on the sidelines of the NATO meeting.
Finland and Sweden came up with a proposal at the meeting to conduct a joint work for addressing Turkey's objections, he said.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday that Turkey does not have a favorable opinion on the idea of Finland and Sweden joining the alliance.
The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the EU, has been rebelling against the Turkish government for more than three decades.
As a NATO member, Turkey can veto a country's admission to the military alliance.
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Turkey’s foreign minister said on Sunday that Sweden and Finland must stop supporting terrorist groups in their countries, provide clear security guarantees and lift export bans on Turkey as they seek membership in NATO.
Speaking after a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Berlin, Mevlut Cavusoglu said he met his Swedish and Finnish counterparts and all were seeking to address Turkey’s concerns.
