Finland and Sweden are preparing for a major NATO naval exercise, amid Turkish unrest
Finland and Sweden are preparing for an expanded NATO naval exercise in the Baltic Sea on Sunday, amid Turks’ concerns about their membership.
NATO’s fourteen-day ‘Baltops 22’ is hosted this year by Sweden, where the Finnish navy and air force also participate.
Military leaders have suggested that it is no coincidence that NATO’s military exercise is larger than in previous years.
The US commander, Vice Admiral Eugene Black, told reporters on Saturday: “The exercise this year is probably about 30 percent larger than last year.
“45 ships, 76 aircraft, 16 nations – 14 of them NATO allies and two very close partners,” he added.
“The aim of the exercise is to develop interoperability between the United States, NATO and partner countries in joint air and naval and amphibious operations,” the Finnish Defense Forces said in a statement on Wednesday.
About 200 Finnish naval personnel will take part in the exercise from 5 to 17 June.
Both Sweden and Finland have reversed traditional neutrality policies by bidding to join the 30-member defensive alliance, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
On Friday, US General Mark Milley met with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto to promise US support for the Nordic duo’s NATO membership, with the shallow Baltic Sea now playing a key role in the Alliance’s defensive calculation.
While they are still being processed, Sweden’s and Finland’s membership offers have been blocked by Turkey and criticized by the country’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
“I speak very clearly about Sweden and Finland in NATO,” Erdoğan said. “The whole world should know this: NATO is not an organization that will provide security against terrorism.”
Turkey is angry at what is seen as Sweden’s and Finland’s willingness to accept Kurds who are affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, which has carried out a decades-long revolt against the Turkish state.
Sweden and Finland blocked arms exports to Turkey after the country began a military invasion of northern Syria in 2019.
Erdogan added: “Right now, terrorist organizations are roaming freely in Sweden and Finland, wearing the terrorist organization’s chief posters, doing so under the security of the Swedish and Finnish police, doing this under the security of the Germans, French, and Dutch police, while all these campaigns are carried out against Turkey. “
Both Sweden and Finland have repeatedly denied that they provide financial assistance or military support to Kurdish groups or units in Syria.
All member states must agree before a new country can join NATO.
At the same time, about 1,800 soldiers from eight NATO countries are taking part in an exercise organized in south-eastern Romania.
NATO has also strengthened its presence here since Russia launched its military attack on Ukraine in February.