Finland will join Nato – it's just a matter of time, Finnish President Sauli Niinistö said on Sunday.
All but two of the 30 Nato members have approved the membership of Finland and Sweden. The two countries applied to join together nearly seven months ago. Accession requires unanimous consent from current members.
Niinistö was asked how long he thought Finland would have to wait for ratification from the holdouts, Hungary and Turkey.
"The Hungarians have said that they will not be the last in this. In Turkey, the solution lies within [President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan's head, and its timing is related to Turkey's internal politics," the president said, adding that "the issue does not seem to have progressed much".
He made the comment while answering questions from the public during a traditional hour-long programme broadcast on Yle Radio 1 and Yle Areena. Some who sent questions in advance posed questions directly to the president during the live broadcast.
Niinistö was asked whether it would help for him to visit Turkey or invite Erdogan to Finland.
The president replied that he has been in touch with Erdogan, but that in his view such a visit would not help much at this point.
Nothing to discuss with Putin at the moment
Turning to relations with Russia, he was asked whether he had made any mistakes in maintaining contacts with President Vladimir Putin after the occupation of Crimea in 2014, when Russia started an open war in Ukraine. The two presidents often met twice a year until the pandemic and last February's dramatic expansion of the war.
Niinistö said that other Western leaders expressed support for his keeping the channel of communication open when few others did and "were satisfied when they found out how the conversations went. Neighbouring countries and the European community have certainly been helped in many ways," said the president.
"There has been no contact since May. It would certainly open if there was a desire to do so, but there is no topic for discussion at the moment," said Niinistö.
Niinistö called Putin in mid-May to inform him that Finland would apply for Nato membership and to express his ”deep concern over the human suffering" caused by Russia's attack on Ukraine and the need to secure the evacuation of civilians.
The two last met face-to-face in October 2021 in Moscow after a two-year break.
Asked what he planned to do to improve relations with Russia, he replied that it depends on whether "the situation clears up," adding that "it may not happen while I am in office." Niinistö, who took office in 2012, is to step down in 2024.
The president was also questioned about his view of European security policy in the near future.
"I've said before that Europe should take security issues more seriously, as Finland has done. If this had been done, Europe would be infinitely strong. Now warning bells have begun to ring and Europe has seen that simply relying on Nato and the United States will not help," he replied.
