NATO failing to overcome differences with Turkey over Finland, Sweden
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Turkey still refuses Finland and Sweden's NATO membership, and the alliance is failing at a solution.
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NATO is failing to overcome differences with Turkey over Finland and Sweden.
Despite the approaching summit in Madrid, NATO has yet to reconcile its positions on the admission of Finland and Sweden to the alliance, as Turkey allegedly refused to make compromises on the topic during trilateral negotiations in Brussels, according to the US-based Al-Monitor news website, citing sources.
On Monday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg conducted meetings between officials from the three countries in order to advance Finland and Sweden's membership bids in the face of Turkey's objections over security concerns.
Read next: Turkey: NATO summit not deadline for talks with Sweden, Finland
According to its sources, the Turkish government has made it a condition for Stockholm and Helsinki to stop cooperating with the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), which is linked with US occupation forces in Syria and affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
In addition, Turkey demanded that Finland and Sweden ban the demonstration in solidarity with self-exiled Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, who was designated as a terrorist over an allegation that he was behind the 2016 failed coup in Turkey. That said, Turkey requested the extradition of his adherents to Sweden, Al-Monitor stated.
Read next: NATO working with Turkey, Nordics to address 'legitimate' concerns
According to insiders, both Nordic countries believe Turkey's demands violate their democratic norms. Sources also told Al-Monitor that the Turkish Presidency did not regard NATO's June summit in Madrid as a deadline for the negations on Sweden and Finland's accession.
"The Turks are not providing any clear perspective [for the countries' membership] and it's likely to turn into fireworks in Madrid," one of the sources was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
On May 18, three months after the Ukraine crisis began, Finland and Sweden submitted NATO membership bids, ending decades of neutrality. However, Turkey refused their applications, and President Tayyip Erdogan stated that Ankara could not consent as long as they supported Kurdish "terrorists".
