MADRID
Turkey, Finland and Sweden on Tuesday signed a memorandum on the Nordic countries’ bids to NATO following talks in Madrid.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Finnish President Sauli Niinisto and Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson met to discuss the factor and Ankara’s concerns.
The memorandum signed through the Foreign Ministers of the 3 countries – Mevlut Cavusoglu of Türkiye, Pekka Haavisto of Finland and Ann Linde of Sweden – in the presence of the 3 national leaders and Stoltenberg.
At the end of the signing ceremony, the NATO leader said at a press conference that he was “happy” to announce that the 3 nations have reached an agreement that paves the way for the Nordic countries to join the military alliance.
“I warmly welcome the signing of this trilateral memorandum, and I warmly welcome the constructive technique that the 3 countries have shown in the negotiations,” he said.
“The NATO club of Finland and Sweden is smart for Finland and Sweden, it’s smart for NATO and it’s smart for European security. “
He added that the signed memorandum addresses Turkey’s considerations in relation to arms exports and the fight against terrorism.
Asked if Sweden and Finland will be invited to join NATO at the summit, Mr. Stoltenberg said the leaders of the allied countries will make the resolution to invite Sweden and Finland to join the alliance.
“After this summit, Finland and Sweden will be invited countries,” he added, recalling that there is a ratification procedure in the assemblies of all member states.
Finland and Sweden also welcomed the agreement reached at the end of the quadripartite talks.
Noting that this agreement is valuable to the Swedish people, Andersson said: “I think we have concluded this agreement for the safety of Sweden and the Swedish people. “
For his part, Niinisto said on Twitter: “Our joint memorandum underlines the commitment of Finland, Sweden and Turkey to provide their full assistance in the face of each other’s security threats. The fact that we become NATO allies will increase this commitment. “
Noting that Finland takes Türkiye’s considerations “seriously,” he said: “Finland condemns terrorism in all its bureaucracy and demonstrations. As a nato member, Finland will commit to NATO counter-terrorism documents and policies. “
“I am very pleased to conclude this milestone on Finland’s path to NATO membership. I now look forward to fruitful talks on Finland’s role in NATO with our long-standing allies here in Madrid. “
Sweden and Finland officially implemented the signing of the alliance last month, a move motivated by Russia’s war against Ukraine.
But Türkiye, a longtime member of the alliance, has voiced objections to the club’s offers, criticizing countries for tolerating and even supporting terrorist groups.
Stoltenberg has consistently stated that Turkey has “legitimate considerations similar to its fight against the PKK terrorist organization and other organizations” and that the PKK is a terrorist organization through NATO, the EU, Finland and Sweden.
During its more than 35-year crusade of terror against Turkey, the PKK blamed for the deaths of more than 40,000 people, including women, youth and infants.