Statement by Antony Blinken on the NATO Process of Finland and Sweden

US Secretary of State Antony John Blinken made statements about the talks between Turkey, Finland and Sweden. Blinken noted that the talks between Turkey and the mentioned countries are continuing and that the USA is in contact with the capital Ankara and is closely following the process.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, who met in Washington, the capital of the United States, made statements about the NATO process of Finland and Sweden at the press conference held after the meeting. Minister Blinken stated that the talks between Turkey, Finland and Sweden are continuing in a stable and constructive manner, and that the USA is in contact with the capital Ankara and is following the issue. Blinken added that he met with Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu in New York, and that after this meeting, all issues were discussed comprehensively and that they believed that both countries would join NATO at the end of the process. Pekka Haavisto said that he visited Turkey twice in a short time and said, "We take the concerns of all NATO members, including Turkey, seriously. We are currently trying to clarify these issues in an open, direct and constructive dialogue with Turkey. Negotiations with Turkey are progressing positively and these negotiations will continue. We trust the open door policy of NATO, which Turkey also supports. We think that the problems (related to PKK and terrorism) that Turkey has voiced can be resolved." Haavisto also underlined that it would be important for them to progress in negotiations with Turkey until the NATO Summit to be held in Madrid in June.