Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Recep Tayyip Erdogan - Turkish politician and prime minister.

Born on February 26, 1954 in Istanbul. He ended his talks today with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, reiterating Ankara's concerns about Finland and Sweden's accession to the Alliance, AFP reported, citing a statement from the Turkish presidency.

"Until Sweden and Finland clearly show their solidarity with Turkey on fundamental issues, especially the fight against terrorism, Turkey will not look favorably on their accession to NATO," Erdogan said.

Ankara has sparked a crisis in NATO, of which it is a member, by opposing the two Scandinavian countries joining the Alliance.

Helsinki and Stockholm decided to apply for membership after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and received the support of the vast majority of member states.

However, Ankara accuses them of sheltering members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK),

which Turkish authorities consider a terrorist organization.

The Finnish president spoke on the phone with Erdogan

After speaking with Erdogan, Stoltenberg said on Twitter that "security concerns of all allies must be taken into account. Discussions continue."

NATO's enlargement procedure requires a unanimous decision, reminds BTA.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Turkey

Sweden

NATO membership

Finland