The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Finland Pekka Haavisto and Swedenʼs Ann Linde signed the protocols on the accession of the countries to the North Atlantic Alliance on Tuesday, July 5.
This was reported by Agence France-Presse.
After the signing of the document, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced the launch of the process of ratification of the membership of both countries.
After ratification by all parliaments, NATO will determine the date from which Finland and Sweden will officially become new members of the Alliance.
- Sweden and Finland have applied to join NATO in May 2022. All 30 member states must agree, but Turkey has vetoed it.
- After talks at the NATO summit in Madrid, Turkish President Recep Erdogan agreed with his Finnish and Swedish counterparts on June 28 on a series of security measures that will allow the two Scandinavian countries to advance in their quest to join the Alliance. Turkish media published the terms agreed to by Sweden and Finland. In particular, they undertake to cooperate with Turkey in countering terrorism and exchange intelligence information. Also, these countries should oppose the Kurdistan Workersʼ Party, recognized as a terrorist in the EU and Turkey, and its affiliated organizations.