Finnish parliament approves accession to NATO

LONDON

The Finnish parliament on Wednesday ratified a legislation approving the Nordic country’s accession to NATO.

The majority of Finnish lawmakers voted in favor of the approval and implementation of the North Atlantic Treaty as 184 MPs supported the country’s membership to NATO.

One null vote was cast and seven MPs were absent.

The country officially applied for NATO membership along with Sweden in May last year, abandoning decades of military non-alignment, a decision spurred by Russia’s war on Ukraine, which started on Feb. 24, 2022.

The two country’s membership to NATO is subject to ratification by all 30 member states.

But Türkiye – a NATO member for more than 70 years – voiced objections, accusing the two countries of tolerating and even supporting terrorist groups including the PKK and the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the July 15, 2016 coup attempt in Türkiye.

Last June, Türkiye and the two Nordic countries signed a memorandum at a NATO summit to address Ankara's legitimate security concerns, paving the way for their eventual membership in the alliance.

In the memorandum, Sweden and Finland agreed not to provide support to the YPG/PYD and FETO, to prevent all activities of the terror groups, the extradition of terror suspects, to introduce new legislation to punish terrorist crimes, and not to implement national arms embargoes among the three countries.

Türkiye on Monday recalled the pledges of Sweden and Finland for their NATO accession bids, saying it is impossible to approve Sweden's bid "without seeing steps taken."

"With regards to the membership of Finland and Sweden, the position of Türkiye is clear and transparent," said Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in a joint news conference with Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, who arrived in Ankara for a solidarity visit following the earthquakes that occurred on Feb. 6.

Reiterating that terrorism is one of the two main threats for NATO, Cavusoglu said Türkiye expects the two Nordic countries to meet Ankara's concerns regarding the fight against terrorism.

Since the signing of the trilateral memorandum in NATO Madrid Summit in June 2022, Cavusoglu said "there has not been any satisfying steps taken by Sweden."

Noting the "determined" stance of the new Swedish government, the Turkish minister also said Sweden has made "amendments to its constitution and some laws, especially the anti-terrorism laws."

"There are pledges (by Sweden and Finland) to NATO membership. It is not possible for us to say 'yes' to Sweden's NATO membership without seeing these steps," he said.

Cavusoglu also said the NATO bids of the two Nordic countries can be assessed separately, as Türkiye is more positive toward Finland's process.

Talks to continue next week

Cavusoglu recalled the mechanism established among Türkiye, Sweden, and Finland, and said it is beneficial for the 3rd meeting of the mechanism to be held in Brussels.

The 3rd round of the mechanism's meeting is to be held on March 9, according to the Turkish foreign minister.