Turkey’s parliament voted in favor of Finland’s NATO accession on March 30. Turkey was the last country in the military alliance to approve the bid, clearing the way for Finland to become a NATO member.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the decision.
Turkey has yet to make a decision on supporting the application of Sweden, which is also seeking to join NATO.
Finland and Sweden submitted their applications in May 2022 to join NATO. However, as per NATO’s rules, each current member of the alliance must support a membership bid.
Turkey’s objection to Finland and Sweden joining NATO stemmed primarily from providing refuge to members of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which Turkey has long designated a terrorist organization.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan met on March 17 with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto in Ankara.
Erdogan changed his stance on Finland’s NATO bid after he received reassurances that Finland would address the concerns over the PKK members living in their country, Reuters reported.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
