According to news from Russian Satellite News Agency and Agence France-Presse on the 17th, Turkish President Erdogan said after meeting with Finnish President Niinisto on the same day that he has asked the Turkish parliament to vote on Finland’s accession to NATO.
Erdogan’s data map issued by Xinhua News Agency
“We have decided to start (ratify) Finland’s NATO accession protocol (process) in parliament,” Erdogan said.
The British “Guardian” stated that Erdogan also expressed the hope that this process could be completed before May this year and Finland would be approved to join NATO.
According to previous media reports, Sweden and Finland will apply to join NATO in May 2022. According to the regulations, NATO must have the “unanimous consent” of 30 member states before it can admit new members, but Turkey expressed opposition to the joining of the two countries. In June of the same year, Turkey, Sweden, and Finland signed a memorandum, confirming that Turkey agreed to support Sweden and Finland in joining NATO, and that Sweden and Finland would not support the PKK, the Syrian Kurdish armed “People’s Protection Units” and the “Gulen Movement”.
Finland has already taken steps in this regard, said an official familiar with the matter. Another senior Turkish official said Finland’s application would be approved independently of Sweden’s.
On March 15 this year, when talking about Finland’s accession to NATO, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he would do his part and “fulfill the promise” after holding talks with the Finnish President on the 17th.
Source: Baijiahao