Finland’s president due in Türkiye for NATO accession

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Finnish counterpart, Sauli Niinisto, will meet on March 17 to discuss Finland’s bid to join NATO amid reports that Ankara plans to ratify Finland’s accession protocol to the alliance in the coming days while delaying Sweden’s bid.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signaled that Ankara will ratify Helsinki’s application and that he will talk about this issue with visiting Niinistö on March 17.

“We will run the necessary procedures. We will do our share and keep our promise. We will meet Mr. President, and we will do whatever is necessary,” he told reporters at the parliament. The Turkish parliament is expected to go to recess before mid-April.

“Finland’s President Sauli Niinistö will pay a working visit to Türkiye on March 16-17, 2023, at the invitation of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. All aspects of the Türkiye-Finland relations, as well as the steps to be taken to enhance the cooperation between the two countries, will be discussed during the talks to be held in Istanbul on March 17,” read a statement issued by the Turkish presidency on March 15.

“Besides the bilateral relations, Finland’s NATO membership application in accordance with the trilateral memorandum signed on the margins of the NATO Madrid Summit, the Türkiye-EU relations and current regional and global issues are also expected to be on the agenda of the talks,” it said.