Turkey opens NATO doors to Finland and Sweden
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg acts on the principle of doing everything to spite Russia. "Putin wanted less NATO, but he will get more," is how Figaro quotes Stoltenberg's words about the accession of Sweden and Finland. But the newspaper recalls the long-term participation of these countries in the maneuvers of the alliance, and also recognizes that Ukraine has no guts to take from Jens.
At the NATO summit in Madrid, Turkey and two Nordic countries – Sweden and Finland – signed a memorandum on lifting the blockade created by the head of the Turkish state.
Turkey did not butt heads with its allies. Even before the official dinner in honor of the opening of the NATO summit on Tuesday evening in Madrid, Ankara reached an agreement with Finland and Sweden that it would not block their entry into the alliance. Without waiting for the meetings of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with Joe Biden and Emmanuel Macron scheduled for Wednesday, Turkey and two Northern European countries signed a memorandum on the removal of the objections of the Turkish head of state. But just before the summit, it seemed that such a solution was impossible. Nevertheless, in the midst of the conflict in Ukraine and under the gaze of its partners, Turkey did not risk a split in the alliance.
The agreement reached takes into account Turkey's concerns about arms exports and the fight against terrorism, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in the evening. "As NATO allies, Finland and Sweden commit to fully support Turkey in the face of threats to its security," he added.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan blocked the process of joining the organization, which requires the consent of all NATO members, in order to achieve a revision of Sweden's lenient policy towards the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and the Kurdish movement as a whole. Ankara and its allies consider the PKK a terrorist group. The Turkish President also criticized the restrictions approved by Stockholm on the supply of weapons to Turkey.
A new blow to the Kurds
In the memorandum, Sweden and Finland undertake to extradite terrorists and amend their legislation. Sweden also promises to "strengthen" its army from July 1. The two countries will also not support the Kurdish self-defense units operating in Syria (YPG and PYD) and the organization of the Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen, accused in Turkey of involvement in the coup attempt against Erdogan in 2016. Jens Stoltenberg said that all procedures will be carried out in accordance with the European conventions on extradition. For the Kurdish group fighting in Syria in alliance with American troops, this is a new diplomatic blow. Sweden and Finland, which increasingly sought to join NATO as the Ukrainian crisis worsened, had to pay a high price in terms of losing the image of a "paradise for refugees" – at least in declarations of intent.
As of Wednesday, thirty member countries of the alliance can begin the accession procedure of Finland and Sweden, which requires consensus. The integration of the two countries will be rapid, as their armies have been working for a long time to meet the NATO criteria. They have been conducting joint exercises with allies for many years. Now, in order to succeed, the membership of Finland and Sweden must only be formally approved by the parliaments of the other thirty countries.
"The door to NATO is open"
Other NATO member countries will not have to publicly punch the table. The French side remained cautious throughout the discussions, ensuring that it would take into account all the concerns of Turkey, while not having confidence that an agreement could be reached. "We'll see," they said at the Elysee Palace before the summit.
Turkey has other topics for negotiations with Western partners about the Kurds allegedly dangerous to them. After the acquisition of Russian S-400 air defense systems, Turkey was excluded from the US program for the supply of F-35 fighters. But it still wants to modernize its aviation fleet. Ankara is also tempted to conduct a military operation in northern Syria in an area controlled by the Kurds in order to create a buffer zone there. But it cannot decide on such an operation without receiving the tacit consent of the United States, as well as Russia, Syria's ally. This issue should be included in the agenda of the bilateral meeting with the American president scheduled for Wednesday.
If the blocking of the accession procedure is removed from the agenda of the North Atlantic Alliance, then NATO can rejoice in success. "Vladimir Putin wanted less NATO, he will get more NATO," said Jens Stoltenberg. By this he means to say that "the door to NATO is open." However, it is clear that this statement was not addressed to Ukrainians. Ukraine's entry into the alliance is certainly irrelevant now.
Nicolas Barotte
