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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said today that he believes Turkey will approve the membership of Sweden and Finland in NATO, Turkish television CNN-Turk reported.

I believe that Turkey will support the membership of Sweden and Finland in the alliance, Scholz said. 

The television also quoted Finnish President Sauli Ninistö, who meanwhile said he believed disagreements with Turkey over the two countries' accession to NATO "could be resolved".

Sweden announced yesterday that it would send a diplomatic delegation to Turkey to discuss Stockholm's bid to join NATO and Turkey's reservations about alleged Swedish support for the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

Sweden has signed an application for NATO membership

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said last night that Turkey would not back down on the issue of Sweden's and Finland's accession to NATO after the two countries formalized their alliances.

Erdogan said delegations from Sweden and Finland should not bother to come to Ankara to persuade Turkey to approve their NATO membership.

The president reiterated that Sweden and Finland were sheltering people he said were linked to groups identified as terrorist, namely the PKK and the FETO (Fethullah Terrorist Organization).

NATO membership

Olaf Scholz