NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg for the first time on Tuesday publicly raised the possibility of Finland entering the alliance before Sweden, while claiming to seek to obtain “as quickly as possible” the last ratifications. Turkey and Hungary for both countries.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had suggested in early February for the first time that the Turkish Parliament could ratify the accession of Finland without that, jointly filed, of Sweden, firmly blocked by Ankara.
“The main question is not whether Finland’s and Sweden’s accessions are ratified together, but whether they are both ratified as soon as possible,” Stoltenberg told a meeting of EU ministers. Defense of the Alliance in Brussels.
“I’m confident they both will be and I’m working hard to get them ratified as soon as possible,” he added.
The leaders of the 30 NATO member countries took the decision to invite Sweden and Finland to join the Alliance at their summit in Madrid in July 2022.
Thirty countries have signed the accession protocols and 28 have ratified them. Only Turkey and Hungary have not yet had their agreement ratified.
During a press conference in Stockholm with her Swedish counterpart, the head of German diplomacy Annalena Baerbock insisted that Stockholm and Helsinki could join NATO before the next Alliance summit in July in Vilnius.
“Sweden and Finland meet the conditions we set in Madrid, so for NATO as a whole it is very important that Sweden and Finland join before the next summit,” the German minister said.
The decision of the Swedish authorities to authorize a demonstration in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm, during which a Koran was burned, provoked the ire of Ankara which put a stop to negotiations after the postponement of a tripartite meeting scheduled for February.
The leaders of the two countries reaffirmed their desire to join it together.
But the hypothesis of a separate membership is now regularly mentioned and a majority of Finns said they were in favor of their country joining NATO without waiting for Sweden.
A separate membership would be “regrettable”, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson commented on Tuesday. “But I have respect for Finland and only Turkey makes Turkish decisions.”
The organization of presidential and legislative elections in Turkey in May could delay the ratification of accessions, as the work of the grand assembly is expected to be suspended in March.
The earthquake that devastated the south of the country could, however, lead to the postponement of the date of the elections.
Sweden and Finland are already very integrated within NATO with their status as guest countries.
They take part in all the meetings and have obtained security guarantees from the main powers of the alliance, led by the United States.