NATO to sign Sweden, Finland accession protocols

• The 30 ambassadors and permanent representatives will formally accept the decisions made at last week’s NATO summit.
• The alliance invited Russia’s neighbour, Finland, and Scandinavian ally Sweden to join the military club.
• Turkey’s final membership could still be held up by the country’s government.

BRUSSELS: The 30 NATO members will sign off on the admission protocols for Sweden and Finland on Tuesday, sending the two countries’ membership applications to the alliance capitals for legislative approval.

After Russia invaded Ukraine in February and started fighting there, this decision will make it even harder for Russia to get along with other countries.

The 30 ambassadors and permanent representatives will formally accept the decisions made at last week’s NATO summit when the alliance invited Russia’s neighbour, Finland, and Scandinavian ally Sweden to join the military club.

Even though the alliance agreed, Turkey’s final membership could still be held up by the country’s government.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned last week that Ankara might still stop the process if the two countries don’t fully comply with Turkey’s demand to extradite terror suspects with ties to banned Kurdish groups or the network of an exiled cleric accused of planning a failed coup in Turkey in 2016.

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He stated that the Turkish parliament could refuse to ratify the agreement. It is a serious threat because NATO membership must be formally accepted by all 30 member states, each of which has the authority to veto.

The anticipated signing on Tuesday will further integrate both states into NATO. As close partners, they have already participated in discussions with matters that directly affect them.

As official invitees, they can go to all ambassadors’ meetings, even though they don’t have the right to vote yet.

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