02:27Belgium: 'This will make our Alliance stronger' - Stoltenberg welcomes Turkey's decision to ratify Finland's NATO bid
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the news that Turkey would be pushing ahead with the process of ratifying Finland’s accession into the defensive alliance during an address in Brussels on Friday.
“This will strengthen Finland’s security, it will strengthen Sweden’s security, and it will strengthen NATO’s security. I hope that the Turkish Grand National Assembly will vote to ratify as soon as possible,” he said.
The NATO chief also stressed the importance of Sweden being allowed entry into the alliance but claimed it was not vital that they receive Ankara’s approval at the same time.
“The most important thing is that both Finland and Sweden become full members of NATO quickly, not whether they join at exactly the same time," Stoltenberg said.
Turkey, alongside Hungary, had until now remained the only NATO member country to abstain from approving Sweden and Finland's applications to join the military alliance.
Ankara has previously expressed concerns about the two nations joining NATO, over their support for Kurdish groups that Turkey considers “terrorists.”
Despite the roadblocks created by Ankara, Stoltenberg added that both Sweden and Finland were already integrated into the alliance politically and militarily and had both received bilateral security assurances from many NATO countries.
“It is inconceivable that NATO would not respond should either Finland or Sweden come under attack. Their security matters to NATO. I look forward to a rapid conclusion of the accession process, and to welcoming both Finland and Sweden to the NATO family as full members as soon as possible," Stoltenberg concluded.
02:27NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the news that Turkey would be pushing ahead with the process of ratifying Finland’s accession into the defensive alliance during an address in Brussels on Friday.
“This will strengthen Finland’s security, it will strengthen Sweden’s security, and it will strengthen NATO’s security. I hope that the Turkish Grand National Assembly will vote to ratify as soon as possible,” he said.
The NATO chief also stressed the importance of Sweden being allowed entry into the alliance but claimed it was not vital that they receive Ankara’s approval at the same time.
“The most important thing is that both Finland and Sweden become full members of NATO quickly, not whether they join at exactly the same time," Stoltenberg said.
Turkey, alongside Hungary, had until now remained the only NATO member country to abstain from approving Sweden and Finland's applications to join the military alliance.
Ankara has previously expressed concerns about the two nations joining NATO, over their support for Kurdish groups that Turkey considers “terrorists.”
Despite the roadblocks created by Ankara, Stoltenberg added that both Sweden and Finland were already integrated into the alliance politically and militarily and had both received bilateral security assurances from many NATO countries.
“It is inconceivable that NATO would not respond should either Finland or Sweden come under attack. Their security matters to NATO. I look forward to a rapid conclusion of the accession process, and to welcoming both Finland and Sweden to the NATO family as full members as soon as possible," Stoltenberg concluded.