Italy now joins Turkey in OPPOSING Finland and Sweden joining NATO, suckers

[Apollonian]

Italy’s Matteo Salvini Speaks Out Against Finland, Sweden Joining NATO, Arms Deliveries to Ukraine​

Link: https://alethonews.com/2022/05/15/i...eden-joining-nato-arms-deliveries-to-ukraine/

By Tim Corso | Samizdat | May 15, 2022​

The leader of Lega, Italian ruling coalition’s party, Matteo Salvini has stood up against the idea of accepting Sweden and Finland in NATO as the former is considering to make this step in the nearest future and the latter have already decided to file a bid to join.

“Not now. Everything that delays the process of achieving peace should be put on a waiting list,” he argued.

His position was backed by a fellow party member, Economic Development Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti, who argued that the accession to NATO of the two new countries located near Russia’s borders, “will definitely not help to reduce the [duration of the Ukrainian] conflict”.

This stance contradicts the official policy declared by Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio – a member of the Five Stars Movement. He stated at the G7 countries’ meeting that Rome would back Finland and Sweden’s bids to join the alliance.

The two countries, which have long maintained their neutral status, changed their tune following the start of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine on 24 February. Sweden has yet to make the final decision on the matter and announce its bid, but NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg already stated that the alliance will gladly welcome both states in its ranks.

Meanwhile, the president of Turkey, a NATO member-state, expressed concern over Finland and Sweden’s bids to join the alliance. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that Ankara can’t consider the prospect of the two countries joining the alliance as positive at the moment.

Lega Leader Against Arms Deliveries to Ukraine

Head of the Lega party Matteo Salvini also has spoken against sending more weapons to Ukraine, arguing that it does not help to stop the conflict.

“It is one thing to send economic and military assistance at the beginning [of the conflict…], it is another thing to do it now. Peace must be achieved, and sending weapons will not help,” Salvini said.

Former Italian Prime Minister and leader of the Five Stars Movement, Giuseppe Conte, holds a similar stance, calling on more efforts to be made in the field of diplomacy instead of arms supplies to Ukraine.

Moscow has repeatedly urged the Western countries to stop supplying weapons to Ukraine, but these calls fell on deaf ears as these states started to ship heavy weaponry to Kiev. The Kremlin argued that such steps only perpetuate the conflict and delay the signings of an agreement that ends the Russian special operation. Moscow accused the West of waging a hybrid war against Russia and using Ukraine for its goals, trying to fight “until the last Ukrainian standing”.

 

[Apollonian]

Turkey clarifies position on new NATO members​

Link: https://www.rt.com/news/555489-turkey-nato-sweden-finland/

Ankara says it's “not closing the door” to the countries, but concerns about “terrorism” must be addressed

© AFP / BELGA/ Benoit Doppagne
Turkey is not seeking to outright shoot down the accession of Sweden and Finland to the US-led NATO bloc, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s top adviser Ibrahim Kalin told Reuters on Saturday. Nonetheless, Ankara’s concerns about organizations it deems to be “terrorist” that are operating in these countries must be addressed, the official said.
“We are not closing the door. But we are basically raising this issue as a matter of national security for Turkey,” Kalin clarified.
READ MORE: Key NATO member against Sweden and Finland in bloc
The official further elaborated on the position voiced by Erdogan on Friday, when the president said Ankara could not support the bids of Finland and Sweden, which are “like guesthouses for terrorist organizations.” To enter the organisation, potential inductees must get the support of all existing members.
Kalin explained that Ankara is particularly concerned about the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), recognized as a terrorist organization in Turkey, as well as in the EU and the US. The issue relates primarily to Sweden, the official clarified.
“What needs to be done is clear: they have to stop allowing PKK outlets, activities, organizations, individuals and other types of presence to...exist in those countries,” Kalin said. “Of course we want to have a discussion, a negotiation with [our] Swedish counterparts.”

NATO membership is always a process. We will see how things go. But this is the first point that we want to bring to the attention of all the allies, as well as to Swedish authorities.

The PKK has been a sworn enemy of Ankara for decades, with the group waging low-intensity insurgency in Kurdish-populated areas of the country’s southeast. The Turkish authorities also regard Kurdish-led militias in neighboring Iraq and Syria, including the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), as offshoots of the PKK and treats them as “terrorists” as well.
Turkey has repeatedly staged incursions into those neighboring countries to fight Kurdish militants over the past few years.

 

[Apollonian]

Erdogan Says Turkey Will Not Approve Finland, Sweden Joining NATO​

Link: https://news.antiwar.com/2022/05/16...will-not-approve-finland-sweden-joining-nato/

Turkey is opposed to the Nordic countries joining due to their alleged support for the Kurdish PKK and export controls on Turkeyby Dave DeCamp Posted onMay 16, 2022CategoriesNewsTagsFinland, NATO, Sweden, Turkey
On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Ankara will not approve Sweden and Finland’s bid for NATO membership over the Nordic countries’ alleged support for the PKK, a Kurdish group Turkey considers to be a terrorist organization.
Sweden and Finland also have imposed a ban on arms exports to Turkey over Erdogan’s offensive in northeast Syria in 2019. “First of all, we cannot say ‘yes’ to those who impose sanctions on Turkey, on joining NATO, which is a security organization,” Erdogan said.
Finland and Sweden need the consent of all 30 NATO members to join the alliance and are hoping to convince Turkey to drop its opposition.
Earlier in the day, Sweden said Swedish and Finnish officials planned to travel to Ankara to discuss Turkey’s concerns, but Erdogan said they shouldn’t bother. “They are coming to Turkey on Monday. Are they coming to convince us? Excuse me but they should not tire themselves,” he said.
On Sunday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Sweden and Finland must lift the arms embargo on Turkey and provide security guarantees on the PKK before Ankara could approve their memberships. Turkey also wants the Nordic countries to extradite suspected PKK members.
Cavusoglu attended a meeting of NATO foreign minister on Sunday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken also participated in. After the meeting, both Blinken and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said they were “confident” the alliance would accept Sweden and Finland despite Turkey’s opposition.