If Turkey continues obstructing their combined attempt to join the military alliance, Finland may consider doing so without Sweden. That is why the U.S. genuinely wants that Sweden join NATO.
Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto stated that the two Nordic countries joining NATO were “undoubtedly the number one option,” but added, “We have to be ready for an assessment situation.”
Has something occurred that would, in the long run, restrict Sweden’s application from moving forward? Asked Haavisto. His query appears to have a yes response. Following the weekend burning of a copy of the Quran in Sweden by a Danish fanatic, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that Turkey no longer supported Sweden’s NATO request.
A short time after making his first statements, Haavisto addressed the media at a hurriedly scheduled press conference in parliament and clarified them, admitting that he had been “imprecise” and that Finland still desired to join NATO alongside the Swedes.
Despite the delay, the foreign minister’s remarks were the first covert admission that the Finnish government had been considering potential outcomes and looking ahead, casting doubt on joining NATO simultaneously with Sweden at a time when the organization is attempting to present a single front in the face of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
He has now specifically stated what was previously implied but unresolved: our goal is always to work with Sweden to accomplish this. However, no one has ever stated with certainty that Finland will ever work alone, including Sanna Marin, Pekka Haavisto, or President Niinistö, according to Charly Salonius-Pasternak, a Senior Researcher at the Finnish Institute for International Affairs (FIIA) in Helsinki.
“At his news conference, he clarified that nothing else needs to be considered as long as the process goes. Finnish policy has stayed the same; if the procedure is stopped permanently, we must consider other options, Salonius-Pasternak told Euronews.
No serious Finnish politician would currently openly promote for the nation to go it alone with its NATO request and leave Sweden behind, especially before a Finnish general election in early April.
Between the Turkish elections in the middle of May and the upcoming NATO meeting in Lithuania in June, Finland sees a potential time window for Turkey to approve NATO applications. After that, if Ankara continued to show no sign of change, more serious conversations would be required to determine the incoming government in Helsinki’s course of action.
What Response has Sweden Shown?
Speaking to journalists in Stockholm on Tuesday night, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said that while he “understands the dissatisfaction that many in Finland feel” over not having recently been confessed to the alliance, he also urged for restraint and urged Swedes who are against NATO membership to “realize the gravity” of the security circumstance.
Kristersson, who took office in the autumn with the backing of a far-right political group, declared that “there are forces both inside and outside Sweden who want to avoid Sweden preventing them from joining NATO and in light of that, we should be aware that some people engage in aggressive behavior to sour Sweden’s relations with other countries and delay its accession to NATO.
Also read: According to Kim North Korea’s 1st spy Satellite is All Set to Launch
