Ankara will not ratify the protocol on the membership of Sweden and Finland in NATO

The head of the Turkish Foreign Ministry, Mevlut Cavusoglu, said that the Turkish Parliament will not ratify the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO under the current conditions.

The head of the Turkish Foreign Ministry stated this during a press conference following the results of negotiations with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijjártó, informs “Anadolu”:

“Members of such terrorist structures as the PKK and the bloody organization of Fethullah Gülen are actively operating in Sweden. Accomplices of terrorists are engaged in propaganda and fundraising, that is, in fact, the financing of terrorism. We are aware of the security priorities of Sweden and Finland, and we expect the same approach from the two Scandinavian countries.”

As you know, the process of Sweden’s accession to NATO stalled due to anti-Turkish speeches in Stockholm. Relations between the three countries – Sweden, Finland and Turkey – became tense. On Saturday evening, as our publication reported, the Finnish Foreign Ministry sent text messages to the Finns in Turkey with cautionespecially avoid crowded places if possible. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not yet changed the general travel advice for Turkey, which was last updated in early December 2022. They contain appeals to Finns traveling to this country to exercise extreme caution.

Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto assessed the situation with NATO accession as follows:

“Of course, you need to assess the situation. Has anything happened that in the long term will hinder the progress of the Swedish project.”

Previously, he admitted that Finland and Sweden may join NATO at different times. Yes, and Ankara “hinted” that it could make a decision “unexpected” for Sweden. Some have speculated that she might approve Finland’s entry into the alliance and block Sweden from doing so. However, as it turned out, Turkey refuses to agree on the admission of both countries to the bloc. Cavusoglu noted that NATO is in favor of simultaneously discussing the applications of the two Scandinavian countries:

“If the position is reconsidered and they stand for consideration of issues separately, then I can say that Ankara is more positive about Helsinki’s entry into the NATO bloc. Finland has laws similar to Sweden, but unlike Stockholm, Helsinki does not sanction shares with the burning of the Koran. Hostility to Christianity and Islam is equally criminal. This is a crime against humanity!”

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