Can Turkey stop Finland, Sweden from joining NATO? Why it’s seeking ‘bargains’

Sweden and Finland are getting ready to ask for entry into the NATO military alliance, but at least one member nation has publicly voiced its opposition. Why is Turkey doing this?

Last month, the head of the NATO said Sweden and Finland would be “warmly welcomed” if the countries decided to apply for membership in the military alliance.

Now, it appears at least one NATO nation doesn’t feel the same way.

Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said on Monday that he would not approve Sweden and Finland’s NATO applications — an apparent roadblock in their quests to enter the alliance amid Russia’s war on Ukraine, which has shaken Europe’s security stance and prompted the two nations to ask for NATO entry.

If Turkey follows through on its leader’s comments, what would it mean for Sweden, Finland and NATO? Here’s what we know so far.

As Finland and Sweden inched closer to making a decision on NATO membership, Turkey hinted last week it would not view their applications positively, mainly citing those nations’ histories of hosting members of groups Turkey deems terrorists.

In a news conference on Monday, Erdogan said his nation would not approve their bids to join NATO, labelling Sweden a “hatchery” for terrorist organizations and adding it had terrorists in its parliament.

“Neither of these countries have a clear, open attitude towards terrorist(s) organization,” he said.

“How can we trust them?”