ANKARA – Documents that Sweden and Finland sent to Turkiye regarding their bid to join NATO do not meet Ankara’s expectations, and its concerns need to be addressed, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Wednesday.
Cavusoglu’s remarks came at a joint news conference with his Norwegian and Irish counterparts following meetings in the Turkish capital Ankara, reported Anadolu Agency.
Besides the Nordic countries’ bids to enter the 30-nation alliance, the ministers also exchanged views on bilateral ties, the war in Ukraine and the humanitarian situation in northern Syria.
The top Turkish diplomat said Finland and Sweden’s responses did not address Turkish concerns and Ankara has briefed both Stockholm and Helsinki as well as NATO on the shortcomings.
“We are one of the strongest supporters of the open-door policy of NATO,” Cavusoglu said, stressing that Ankara was aware of the “legitimate concerns” of both Sweden and Finland that prompted their intentions to join NATO.
On the other hand, the Turkish minister went on to note that it was vital that all three countries put some effort into understanding and supporting each other, underlining that one of the problems was the restrictions that the other two imposed on Turkiye’s defense industry.
“These (restrictions) must be lifted as well. This is an expectation of ours,” said Cavusoglu, also noting that these issues needed to be resolved through talks, not sanctions.
Sweden and Finland formally applied to join NATO on May 18, a decision spurred by Russia’s war on Ukraine, which began on Feb 24.
But Turkiye, a longstanding member of the alliance, has voiced objections to their membership bids, criticising the countries for tolerating and even supporting terrorist groups such as the PKK and the Fetullah Terrorist Organisation (FETO).
Their accession requires the unanimous approval of all 30 NATO member countries.
