Copenhagen [Denmark], February 3: The prime ministers of NATO candidate nations Sweden and Finland vowed on Thursday to continue their journey to accession together despite opposition from Turkey.
Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin became the first head of government to be received by her Swedish counterpart Ulf Kristersson since he took office last year.
The journey that has begun must continue "hand in hand," Marin told reporters in Stockholm."Finland and Sweden have applied together and it is in everyone's interest that we join NATO together." Turkish President RecepTayyip Erdogan has said he may allow Finland to join, but has major reservations about Sweden becoming a member after a series of protests against Turkey.
Most recently, the right-wing extremist Danish-Swedish politician RasmusPaludan set a Koran on fire in front of a mosque in Stockholm.
Turkey had already said that Sweden was not sufficiently committed to fighting "terrorists," Kurds whom the Swedes see as asylum seekers.
Erdogan is on the campaign trail, with parliamentary and presidential elections expected to be held in mid-May.
Erdogan's indignation plays well with his conservative base and he holds the trump card, with all of NATO's 30 members having to agree to new entrants to the western military alliance. Hungary has also yet to say yes.
Swedish Prime Minister Kristersson addressed Finland's Marin on Thursday, saying: "We have embarked on this journey together. And we are also completing the journey to membership together."
However, an opinion poll published by the Finnish newspaper Ilta-Sanomat showed a majority of respondents said Finland should not wait to join NATO if the ratification of Sweden's application drags on longer.
Source: Qatar Tribune