The foreign ministers of the Czech Republic, Norway and Slovakia voiced their support for the prospect of Sweden and Finland joining NATO shortly before the working dinner of the informal meeting of the Alliance’s foreign ministers in Berlin.
Czech Minister Jan Lipavsky said his country fully supports the accession of Sweden and Finland, considers them friendly countries and that will be the message of the Prague government.
Mr Lipawski noted, however, that accession required a “long roadmap” and stressed that defending NATO’s east side was a key priority.
Norwegian Foreign Minister Anike Heutfeld said it was not yet clear what exactly Turkey meant by the reservations it had expressed, but that its country fully supported Sweden and Finland’s accession to NATO.
“We believe that its accession will strengthen co-operation in the north,” he said, referring to a historic moment.
“We are always building on deterrence and security, but now we have to take into account the new data with Russia,” he added.
Referring to the war in Ukraine, Slovak Foreign Minister Ivan Korczok stressed that the war “is taking place very close to the Slovak border, our citizens are afraid and we must do everything we can to defend what NATO stands for”, and called for continued support. of Ukraine – and by military means – “until Ukraine wins”.
“Otherwise, Ukraine will be defeated and that would be a disaster for Slovakia, Europe and the transatlantic community,” he said, noting that Russia had lost the war politically, as it had achieved the exact opposite of what it had sought.
Regarding Turkey’s stance, the Slovak minister said that “obviously unanimity is needed” for a country’s accession decision, but expressed confidence that “all 30 member states will agree and this will strengthen the security not only of these two countries. but of the whole Alliance. “
His country, he added, is fully prepared to support the request.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News
and be the first to know all the news
