According to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, there is movement in the dispute over the admission of Sweden and Finland to NATO.
As Stoltenberg said on Monday during a visit to Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, the Scandinavian country meets Turkey’s objections on two counts: it welcomes the fact that Sweden has already started to change its anti-terror legislation and that the country will ensure that the legal framework for arms exports reflects its future status as a NATO member with new commitments to allies.
“These are two important steps to address the concerns raised by Turkey,” Stoltenberg said. Andersson assured that the Swedish anti-terror laws have been changed in recent years and will continue to be changed. “We take Turkey’s concerns very seriously, and not least their security concerns in the fight against terrorism,” she said at Stoltenberg’s side.
Sweden and Finland had applied to be included in the defense alliance in mid-May. Turkey is currently the only NATO member blocking the start of the admission process for the two countries. Ankara justifies its stance with the alleged support of Finland and Sweden for “terrorist organizations” such as the banned Kurdish Workers’ Party PKK. The objections seem to be mainly aimed at Sweden and less so at Finland.
