A protocol on the accession of Finland and Sweden will be signed in NATO on 5 July

NATO will sign a protocol on the accession of Finland and Sweden to the Alliance on 5 July. The day before, formal negotiations will begin on the compliance of these countries with all criteria.

This was stated by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, writes Yle.

"We will formally sign the accession protocol with the foreign ministers of Finland and Sweden on Tuesday," he said.

According to the Finnish Foreign Ministry, negotiations on the accession of Finns and Swedes to NATO are likely to begin on July 4. Formally, they must determine whether these countries meet the standards and requirements of the Alliance. After that, the protocol for admission will be signed on July 5.

This protocol must be ratified by the parliaments of each NATO member state. When this process is completed, a final date will be set for Finland and Sweden to become members of the Alliance.

As long as this process continues, the two countries will receive observer status and will be able to participate in NATO meetings, as well as establish cooperation with other countries.

• Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO in May 2022. All 30 member states must agree, but Türkiye has vetoed it.
• Following talks at the NATO summit in Madrid on 28 June, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed with his Finnish and Swedish counterparts on a series of security measures that would allow the two Scandinavian countries to advance in their bid to join the Alliance. Turkish media published the terms agreed by Sweden and Finland. In particular, they undertake to cooperate with Türkiye in the fight against terrorism and exchange intelligence. These countries must also oppose the Kurdish Workersʼ Party, recognized as terrorist in Türkiye and the EU, and its affiliates.