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NATO Signs on Sweden, Finland 07/05 06:14
The 30 NATO allies signed off on the accession protocols for Sweden and
Finland on Tuesday, sending the membership bids of the two nations to the
alliance capitals for legislative approvals -- and possible political trouble
in Turkey.
BRUSSELS (AP) -- The 30 NATO allies signed off on the accession protocols
for Sweden and Finland on Tuesday, sending the membership bids of the two
nations to the alliance capitals for legislative approvals -- and possible
political trouble in Turkey.
The move further increases Russia's strategic isolation in the wake of its
invasion of neighboring Ukraine in February and military struggles there since.
"This is truly a historic moment for Finland, for Sweden and for NATO," said
alliance Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
The 30 ambassadors and permanent representatives formally approved the
decisions of last week's NATO summit when the alliance made the historic
decision to invite Russia's neighbor Finland and Scandinavian partner Sweden to
join the military club.
Parliamentary approval in member state Turkey could still pose problems for
their final inclusion as members, despite a memorandum of understanding reached
between the three.
Last week, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned that Ankara could
still block the process if the two countries fail to fully meet Turkey's demand
to extradite terror suspects with links to outlawed Kurdish groups or the
network of an exiled cleric accused of a failed 2016 coup in Turkey.
He said Turkey's Parliament could refuse to ratify the deal. It is a potent
threat since NATO accession must be formally approved by all 30 member states,
which gives each a blocking right.
Stoltenberg said he expected no change of heart. "There were security
concerns that needed to be addressed. And we did what we always do at NATO. We
found common ground."
At a news conference, the foreign ministers of Sweden and Finland were
peppered with questions about whether a specific list of people would need to
be extradited to Turkey, but both said such a list was not part of the
memorandum with Ankara.
"We will honor that memorandum and follow up on that," said Swedish Foreign
Minister Ann Linde, adding her government's actions would always "comply with
the Swedish legislation. We will comply with international law."
She added, though, that "we will see to it that we have a mechanism of
fighting terrorism in all its forms."
Every alliance nation has different legislative challenges and procedures to
deal with, and it could take several more months for the two to become official
members.
Germany's parliament is set to ratify the membership bids on Friday,
according to coalition party Free Democrats. Other parliaments might only get
to the approval process after the long summer break.
"I look forward to a swift ratification process," said Finnish Foreign
Minister Pekka Haavisto. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has given the process
added urgency. It will ensconce the two nations in the Western military
alliance and give NATO more clout, especially in the face of Moscow's military
threat.
"We will be even stronger and our people will be even safer as we face the
biggest security crisis in decades," said Stoltenberg.
Tuesday's signing-off does bring both nations deeper into NATO's fold
already. As close partners, they already attended some meetings that involved
issues that immediately affected them. As official invitees, they can attend
all meetings of the ambassadors even if they do not yet have any voting rights.
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