Foreign Ministers of Sweden and Finland: Our path to NATO has not stopped

(Patria) - The Foreign Ministers of Sweden and Finland reiterated in separate interviews that the accession process of the two Nordic countries to NATO continues despite the Turkish president saying that Sweden should not expect his country to approve membership, AP reports.

Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström admitted in an interview with the Swedish newspaper Expressen that Turkish anger over recent demonstrations and the burning of the Quran in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm has complicated Sweden's entry into NATO.

To admit new countries, NATO requires unanimous approval from its existing members, including Turkey. Despite this, the Swedish government hopes to join NATO this summer, Billström said.

"It goes without saying that we are looking at the (NATO) summit in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, in July," Billström told Expressen when asked about the timeline for Sweden's possible accession.

Expressen quoted Billström as saying that work on Sweden's and Finland's entry into NATO is not on hold.

"The NATO process has not stopped. The (Swedish) government continues to implement the memorandum that exists between Sweden, Finland and Turkey. But it is up to Turkey to decide when it will ratify," he said.

Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto echoed his Swedish counterpart, saying the two countries plan to continue their joint path to NATO.

"In my opinion, the path to NATO is not closed for either country," Haavisto said in an interview with the Finnish public broadcaster YLE.

He said that Ankara's announcement to postpone trilateral talks with Finland, Sweden and Turkey for now "represents an extension of time from the Turkish side and that this issue can be reconsidered after the Turkish elections" scheduled for May 14 this year.

Haavisto said he hopes that the finalization of Finland's and Sweden's membership will be enabled at the NATO summit on July 11-12 in Lithuania.