[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] U.S. President Joe Biden on the 19th (local time) evaluated that Sweden and Finland meet all the requirements for joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and once again expressed strong support.
President Biden made this statement during a joint press conference after a summit at the White House in the morning with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and Finnish President Sauli Niinist?, saying, "We strongly support the two countries' application to join NATO, the strongest defense alliance in history."
He said, "The two proud independent nations are exercising the sovereignty that every country has to determine its national security," adding, "NATO is important, effective, and needed now more than ever." He also mentioned that Sweden and Finland have already worked alongside U.S. and NATO forces in Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq.
President Biden also emphasized that the two countries meet all the requirements for NATO membership. He defined the day Finland and Sweden decided to join NATO as a "momentous day." At that time, President Biden expressed strong support for their move, saying, "I look forward to working with Congress and NATO to ensure their swift accession to the strongest security alliance in history."
Until now, Sweden and Finland had maintained a neutral stance under their military non-alignment policies and had not joined NATO. However, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February, public support for NATO membership rapidly spread, leading to their decision to join.
However, NATO membership requires unanimous approval from all 30 existing member countries. Currently, Turkey's opposition is considered a variable.
Regarding this, Finnish President Niinist? stated, "We have always maintained good bilateral relations with Turkey," and "As NATO allies, we will promise Turkey's security just as Turkey promises ours." Turkey is concerned about Finland and Sweden supporting the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a Kurdish armed group conducting separatist movements within Turkey.
Swedish Prime Minister Andersson confirmed that "We have concluded that the safety of our people will be best protected within the NATO alliance," and that this decision to join was due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
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