Stoltenberg fires at Turkey, which opposes Finland-Sweden accession to NATO

The Secretary-General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Jens Stoltenberg, said last night that Turkey’s reservations about Finland and Sweden’s bids to join NATO should be taken into account.

“Turkey is a valuable ally and any (security) concerns must be addressed. We must stand together at this historic moment,” Stoltenberg said on Twitter after meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoλουlu. . The Norwegian avoided expanding.

Finland and Sweden have formalized their intention to join NATO following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But Ankara says it will only agree if certain conditions are met.

On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stressed that he could not agree to join the alliance of states that have imposed sanctions on his country and reiterated his accusation that Helsinki and Stockholm support “terrorist organizations” such as the Labor Party. (PKK), or the People’s Protection Units (YPG).

Moreover, during the NATO Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Berlin yesterday Sunday, Mr. Tsavousoglu succeeded against other member states because they have restricted arms exports to Turkey because of the war he is waging against the two Kurdish organizations.

Last week, Mr Erdogan accused the two Nordic countries of being “terrorist hostels”.

It is unclear how – in return – Turkey would be persuaded not to veto the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO, which the Atlantic Alliance wants completed by the summer. Diplomatic sources believe that Helsinki and Stockholm guaranteeing counter-terrorism and arms deals could break the deadlock. Diplomats from the two Nordic countries are expected in Ankara in the coming days for talks.

SOURCE: AMPE