The Foreign Minister of Finland has announced that there should be a break of a few weeks in the negotiations with Turkey regarding the accession of the two Nordic countries to NATO, writes Reuters.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced on Monday, the 23rd of January, that Sweden can’t count on Turkey’s support after a copy of the Quran was burned in protest at the embassy.
«A time-out is needed before we return to the three-way talks and see where we are when the dust has settled after the current situation, so no conclusions should be drawn yet,»
Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told Reuters.
Sweden and Finland applied for NATO membership last year, and now both countries need the consent of all NATO countries. However, Turkey has indicated that Sweden in particular needs to take a tougher stance on individuals and organizations that Turkey considers terrorist.
Erdogan announced on the 23rd of January that the Turkish presidential and parliamentary elections will be held a month earlier than previously planned, and have been postponed to the 14th of May. Hávisto informed that he spoke with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, and indicated that there is currently a lot of tension in Turkey in connection with the elections.
Finland and Sweden have repeatedly said they plan to join NATO at the same time, and Haavisto added that he saw no reason to consider the idea that Finland could do it alone.
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