NATO says “works hard” on issues concerning Finland, Sweden’s command
Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson (R) and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will participate in a press conference in Stockholm on 13 June 2022. [Photo/Xinhua]
STOCKHOLM – Contrary to previous claims that Finland’s and Sweden’s accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) would be a quick process, the military alliance’s secretary general Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday that “there is no way to say exactly when” This will happen when you visiting Sweden.
While the parliaments of several NATO member states have already approved the accession of the two Nordic countries to the alliance, Turkey has so far not given the green light, citing the two countries ‘ties with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and other Turkish groups as terrorists.
Ankara has also expressed its dissatisfaction with Sweden’s arms embargo against Turkey and despite hopes that these issues would be resolved ahead of the NATO summit in Madrid at the end of the month, Stoltenberg said on Monday that “the Madrid summit was never a deadline”.
“We are working to find the solution as soon as possible. But when many or more countries are involved, there is no way to say exactly when these countries will be able to agree,” he said.
During a meeting with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto on Sunday, Stoltenberg called Turkey’s concerns “legitimate”. This was repeated by Sweden’s Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson.
“We take the Turkish fears very seriously and other issues and not least there are security problems when it comes to the fight against terrorism,” Andersson said in a joint press conference with Stoltenberg on Monday at the Prime Minister’s official summer residence in Harpsund about 120 kilometers west of Stockholm .
The Secretary General of NATO said that he was hopeful that the latest signals from Sweden and Finland would bring them one step closer to becoming members of the military alliance.
“We are working hard and actively on these issues in close consultation with Stockholm, with Helsinki and, of course, our NATO ally Turkey. And in that context, those signals from Sweden about terrorism and arms exports are important,” said Stoltenberg.