Erdoğan: Turkey to ratify Finland's NATO membership

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Turkey will ratify Finland's NATO membership, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced today (March 17).

"We have decided to start the ratification process in the parliament," Erdoğan said at a joint press conference with Finland's President Sauli Niinistö in Ankara.

Niinistö arrived in Turkey yesterday to visit the region hit by last month's massive earthquakes that claimed over 48,000 lives.

In late January, Erdoğan had implied Turkey might allow Finland's membership without Sweden.

The two Nordic countries last year applied to join NATO, in a decision triggered by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Turkey, however, objected to their membership because of their inaction against "terror groups."

The three countries signed a trilateral memorandum of understanding on June 28 at the NATO summit in Madrid, which stipulates that Finland and Sweden will not provide support to the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and the People's Defense Units (YPG), which Turkey sees as the PKK's extensions in Syria.

The Nordic countries also agreed to address Ankara's pending deportation or extradition requests regarding "terror" suspects.

Turkey's parliament must ratify the country's approval for Finland and Sweden's membership for them to join NATO.

In September, Sweden lifted restrictions on arms sales to Turkey, which was among Ankara's demands in order to approve its NATO bid.

The trilateral talks were interrupted after the Quran-burning incidents in Sweden in late January. The talks resumed on March 9. (ME/VK)