US: Turkey’s NATO issues with Sweden, Finland will be fixed

By MATTHEW LEE
AP Diplomatic Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says he’s confident Turkey’s objections to Finland and Sweden joining NATO can be overcome swiftly. At a Washington news conference Friday with visiting Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, Blinken said the U.S. has no reason to believe Turkey’s concerns cannot be addressed. Haavisto said his country and Sweden had held “good negotiations” with the Turks in recent days and said those would continue with an eye toward resolving them before the NATO summit in Madrid at the end of June. Earlier Friday, Turkey’s foreign minister said Sweden and Finland must take “concrete steps” to alleviate his country’s security concerns.