The President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has revealed that he would no longer uphold his opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO following crunch talks with the leaders of the two Nordic countries in Madrid.
Africa Daily News, New York recalls that Erdogan had deliberately refused to green-light the applications from the Nordic pair — lodged in response to Russia’s war on Ukraine — despite calls from his NATO allies to clear the path for them to enter.
Turkey could essentially veto Finland and Sweden from joining NATO since all members must agree to taking on new members.
However, in a surprise move early Wednesday morning, Erdogan’s office said it had agreed to back their drives to join, saying Ankara had “got what it wanted”.
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‘Turkey has made significant gains in the fight against terrorist organisations,’ the office said ahead of a NATO summit in Madrid.
Ankara had accused Finland and especially Sweden of offering a safe haven to Kurdish militants who have been waging decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state.
The two Nordic countries also agreed to lift their embargoes on weapons deliveries to Turkey, which were imposed in response to Ankara’s 2019 military incursion into Syria.
Turkey signed a memorandum with Finland and Sweden on Tuesday supporting the invitation for the Nordic countries to become members of NATO, the Finnish presidency said.
NATO allies including Britain hailed the agreement.
The move comes after NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg mediated talks in Madrid between Erdogan and the leaders of Sweden and Finland.
‘I’m pleased to announce that we now have an agreement that paves the way for Finland and Sweden to join NATO,’ he said.
The agreement “addresses Turkey’s concerns, including around arms exports, and the fight against terrorism,” he added.
Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson on Tuesday hailed a ‘very good agreement’ with Turkey but insisted Sweden had not made too many concessions to Erdogan.
‘Taking the next step toward a full NATO membership is of course important for Sweden and Finland. But it’s also a very important step for NATO, because our countries will be security providers within NATO,’ Andersson told AFP in an interview.
Africa Daily News, New York recalls that Sweden and Finland went into the NATO meeting open to the possibility that Turkey might only lift its objections after the summit concludes on Thursday.
