NATO does not see the June 28-30 Madrid summit as a deadline for hosting Finland and Sweden, which has been delayed due to Turkish objections. This was stated on Sunday by the secretary general of the organization Jens Stoltenberg, speaking at a press conference in Helsinki with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, which was broadcast by the press service of the alliance.
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“We do not consider the Madrid summit to be a deadline for Sweden and Finland to join,” Stoltenberg said, answering journalists’ questions about whether NATO would be able to lift Turkey’s objections to the admission of these two countries by the time it was held. “Turkey has expressed certain concerns. We have sat down at the negotiating table and are in contact with Turkey, Finland and Sweden to address these concerns. Turkey is a very important country of the alliance, which is of key importance in the fight against terrorism.”
Turkey has also accepted more than other refugees from Syria and has its own legitimate concerns in the field of combating terrorism,” the Secretary General said.
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“But we must understand that we live in a more dangerous world in which Russia is trying to restore the world order, which provides for the creation of zones of influence. This was one of the reasons for the decision of Finland and Sweden to join NATO. On the other hand, Turkey has always supported NATO’s open door policy,” he added.
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In turn, the President of Finland expressed surprise at the position of Turkey, which, according to him, “back in April supported the admission of Sweden and Finland.”
