The accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO could now happen quickly. But there are contradictions – not only from Russia, but also from the alliance itself.
Finland’s possible NATO membership has cleared the next hurdle, but at the same time it is causing discord within the alliance.
After President Sauli Niinistö and Prime Minister Sanna Marin, Marin’s Social Democrats in Finland have also spoken out in favor of their country’s NATO membership.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock was irritated by statements by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In her view, every democratic country should actually be pleased if democracies with strong defense capabilities make the joint alliance stronger, said the Green politician after a G7 foreign ministers’ meeting on the Baltic Sea. The day before, Erdogan had declared that he had “no positive opinion” about Finland’s and Sweden’s possible NATO membership.
Putin criticizes Finnish plans
In a phone call with Finland’s President Sauli Niinistö, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin described Helsinki’s planned NATO membership as a mistake. Russia does not pose a threat to the neighboring country, Putin emphasized during the talks, according to the Kremlin. Finland’s move away from traditional neutrality will worsen what has been good neighborly relations, he warned.
Finland and neighboring Sweden are already close partners of NATO, but are not official members. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered an intense NATO debate in both countries. Finland’s membership would double NATO’s border with Russia in one fell swoop. Russia wants to make its response dependent on the alliance’s specific military infrastructure.
Erdogan’s skeptical attitude could still become a problem for accession plans: Turkey could theoretically block accession, since decisions within NATO are based on the consensus principle. The possible NATO accession of the two Nordic countries should also be discussed at a meeting of the foreign ministers of the NATO countries in Berlin from late Saturday afternoon.
Source: Stern
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