Türkiye to 'do its part' on Finland's NATO bid: President

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) - On Finland's NATO bid, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said Türkiye will "do its part" after upcoming talks with his Finnish counterpart Sauli Niinisto.

"Whatever the process is, we will run that process. We will do our part. We will keep our promise," Erdogan told the reporters after the Justice and Development (AK) Party's group meeting in the parliament.

After meeting with Finnish President Niinisto on Friday in Istanbul, Erdogan said: "We will meet with the president and fulfill the promise we made."

Niinisto will pay a visit to Türkiye on March 16-17, Türkiye's Communications Directorate said on Wednesday.

Erdogan and Niinisto will discuss all aspects of bilateral relations, and steps that can be taken to improve cooperation.

They will also exchange views on last year's NATO Madrid summit, Finland's NATO membership bid, Türkiye-EU relations, and regional and international issues, according to the statement.

Last June, Türkiye, Finland, and Sweden signed a memorandum at a NATO summit in Madrid to address Ankara's legitimate security concerns, paving the way for their eventual membership in the alliance.

The memorandum addresses Türkiye's concerns, including arms exports and the fight against terrorism.

Only Hungary and Türkiye have not yet ratified Sweden's and Finland's requests for inclusion in NATO.

To approve their NATO membership bids, Ankara demands the two Nordic countries take concrete actions to combat terror groups PKK and Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated coup in Türkiye. However, Sweden is seen as not doing enough to gain Türkiye’s approval.

Previously, Erdogan gave greenlight to Finland's membership before Sweden, saying: "We may respond differently to Finland if necessary."