In the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated it is impossible for NATO-member Turkey to allow Sweden and Finland joining the transatlantic military alliance, signaling a probable roadblock to their ascension efforts.
Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul on Friday that Ankara had “negative views” on the Scandinavian nations’ planned membership bids, accusing them of serving as “guesthouses for terrorist organizations.”
In certain nations, they are even members of parliament. “It’s impossible for us to be in favor,” he remarked, without providing any other information.
Turkey has repeatedly chastised Sweden and other Western European countries for their treatment of groups that Ankara considers “terrorists,” such as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), as well as followers of US-based Muslim scholar Fethullah Gulen.
Ankara claims that Gulenists attempted a coup in 2016. The accusation is denied by Gulen and his supporters.
Because all 30 NATO members must unanimously approve a new country joining the US-led alliance, Turkey’s objection might pose a dilemma for Sweden and Finland.
Erdogan said NATO made a mistake in 1952 when it included Greece, which Ankara disagrees with on a number of topics, and warned against making “similar mistakes” now. Turkey joined NATO in 1952 as well.
His comments come after Finland’s president and prime minister announced on Thursday that the country must apply to join the alliance “as soon as possible” — comments that enraged Moscow, who threatened to punish with vague “military-technical” measures.
Finland, which shares a 1,300-kilometer (810-mile) border with Russia, is set to announce its decision on Sunday after a meeting of the country’s top politicians. Sweden will most likely follow suit.
Later on Friday, Finland’s Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto responded to Erdogan’s remarks by urging patience and calling for a step-by-step response to Turkish resistance. Sweden provided no quick response.
Both countries will be rapidly welcomed into NATO if they pursue membership, according to NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, popular and political opinion in Finland and Sweden has shifted in favor of membership as a deterrent to Moscow’s aggressiveness.
The two are already close NATO friends, attending several meetings and being briefed on the situation in Ukraine on a regular basis. They also participate in regular military drills with NATO members. Much of their military hardware is compatible with those of NATO members.
They cannot, however, take use of NATO’s collective defense clause, which states that an assault on one ally constitutes an attack on all allies, until they join the alliance.
If they join NATO, the geopolitical map of northern Europe would be redrawn, with a mostly unbroken ribbon of NATO member nations facing Russia stretching from the Arctic to the Black Sea.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed alarm about NATO’s latest waves of expansion, and earlier this month said he ordered Russian troops into Ukraine in reaction to the alliance’s purported military build-up in areas bordering Russia, among other things.
Turkey has condemned Russia’s incursion, dispatched armed drones to Ukraine, and attempted to broker peace talks between the two countries.
Ankara, on the other hand, has refused to support Western sanctions against Moscow, preferring to keep tight trade, energy, and tourism links with Russia.
