Finland announces entry into NATO; Turkey bitterly opposes entry of Swed

Helsinki/Istanbul: Finland’s President Sauli Niinisto and Prime Minister Sana Marin announced on Sunday that their country would apply for NATO membership. It was informed that the petition would be filed next week after approval by the Finnish parliament. Analysts claim that Finland’s decision to join NATO, despite warnings from Russian President Vladimir Putin, could lead to potential conflict and instability in Europe. Turkey, meanwhile, has vehemently opposed the inclusion of Finland and Sweden into NATO. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has given a clear signal that Turkey is not optimistic about the inclusion of both countries.

President Sauli Niinisto announced the entry into NATO, saying ‘The President of Finland and the Foreign Policy Committee of the Government have jointly decided to apply for NATO membership. This is a historic day and the beginning of a new era.’ Prime Minister Sana Marin assured that the Finnish parliament would pass a resolution supporting the decision to join NATO in the next few days.

The announcement by the Finnish government is said to be a significant and decisive change in the country’s policy. For the past 75 years, Finland has pursued a policy of military non-alignment. With the entry into NATO, the country completely abandoned this policy. Before making the announcement on Sunday regarding NATO, President Ninisto held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday. At the time, Putin had made it clear that joining NATO would be a blunder. But Finland’s announcement, made despite the warning, would have long-term effects on European security and stability, claim analysts.

Meanwhile, Turkey, a leading NATO member, has strongly opposed Finland and Sweden’s accession to NATO. President Erdogan expressed his opposition to the inclusion of Finland and Sweden into NATO in clear words’ Turkish view on Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership is not positive. Both countries are safe havens for terrorists. In some countries, terrorists have even become members of parliament. Do not expect Turkey to support such countries.’ This time, President Erdogan also accused that the inclusion of Greece into NATO in 1952 was also a mistake.

Great Britain and Germany, two of NATO’s leading nations, have signalled a ‘fast-track’ process for Finland and Sweden to join NATO. But Turkey’s opposition could be a major obstacle. Although Turkey has criticized Russia in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, it has refrained from taking an aggressive stance against it and imposing sanctions. On the contrary, there have been constant attempts at mediation between the two countries. Against this backdrop, Turkey’s opposition to Finland and Sweden is striking. Some European countries have also taken a negative stance on Ukraine’s NATO membership.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has claimed that the Russian military has been forced to retreat from the city of Kharkiv in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Russia has not confirmed this.