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The NATO flag
Photo:
Sasha Steinach;
/ imago images / Steinach
30 are to become 32: the accession protocols required for the admission of Sweden and Finland have been signed at NATO headquarters in Brussels.
The ceremony was attended by representatives of all 30 member states.
With the signing, the governments of the NATO countries authorize the Secretary General of the alliance to officially invite Sweden and Finland to join.
This means that the two countries can take part in all meetings of the military alliance, but they cannot yet vote.
The governments of the 30 NATO countries still have to approve the accession.
The respective national parliament is usually also involved in this procedure.
According to estimates, it could therefore take another six to eight months before Finland and Sweden can actually join the alliance.
The Bundestag will probably ratify the accession on Friday.
This was announced by the parliamentary director of the FDP parliamentary group, Johannes Vogel, according to the Reuters news agency.
That shows the "strength and growing together of the West," said Vogel.
The Bundesrat then has to agree, which is expected.
abandoned neutrality
Actually, the protocols for the two Nordic countries should have been signed several weeks ago.
However, Turkey initially blocked the accession process, citing Sweden and Finland's alleged support of "terrorist organizations" such as the banned Kurdish Workers' Party PKK, the Syrian Kurdish militia YPG and the Gülen movement as the reason for this.
Only when both countries pledged in writing on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Madrid last week that they would respond to several of Turkey's demands did Turkey give up its resistance to the start of the admissions process.
Finland and Sweden broke with their traditional neutrality in May because of the Russian attack on Ukraine and applied for NATO membership.
sak/dpa/AFP
