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The potential NATO membership of Finland and Sweden may have stalled as Turkish officials recently indicated opposition to their membership. The Nordic countries’ applications must be approved unanimously by all NATO members, and Turkey’s President recently said delegates from Finland and Sweden should not even bother traveling to Turkey for diplomatic talks.
Turkey, along with Greece, became NATO members in 1952, approximately 3 years after NATO was established. The following highlights some reasons contributing to Turkey’s objections to expanding NATO membership to include the Nordic countries.
1. Alleged Support of Terrorist Organizations by Finland and Sweden. The Kurdistan Workers' Party (‘PKK’) bases itself in southeastern Turkey and northern Iraq. The party formed because of concerns over the treatment of Kurds in Turkey. The organization is both political, militant, and armed. The organization has fought in the conflict between Turkey and various groups demanding Kurdish autonomy, advocating for separation from Turkey and establishing an independent Kurdish state. Various countries designate the PKK a terrorist organization, though some experts claim the organization no longer engages in terrorist activities. Turkey’s President Erdogan claims Finland and Sweden offer support for this organization, including failing to extradite requested individuals Turkey claims to have links to the PKK and terrorist activities.
2. Sweden’s Arms Embargo. Turkey’s President targets Sweden for its arms embargo. Sales to Turkey by Sweden ceased in 2019 because of Sweden’s concerns over Turkey’s military activities in Syria.
3. Leverage over the US. The US and Turkey had a major falling out in 2017 after Turkey purchased Russian-made S-400 surface-to-air missile systems, alleging US inaction on a similar request. As a result, the United States imposed sanctions on Turkey and excluded it from the F-35 fighter jet program. This position displeases Turkey and Turkey could use Finland’s and Sweden’s NATO applications as leverage in its disagreement with the US.
Despite the above, Turkey traditionally supports NATO expansion and experts believe Turkey ultimately will support the membership of the two Nordic countries with conditions supporting its national interests.
