OUR Sweden ready to inspect nuclear weapon on its territory as soon as it becomes a member of NATO, new Prime Minister Ulf Kristerson said, Finnish analogue of Sana Marin.

“We shouldn’t put any conditions,” Sana Marin said at a joint press conference in Helsinki. “We decided we didn’t want to close any doors.”

“You will get exactly the same answer from me as from the Prime Minister of Finland,” Kristersson added.

“It is natural that Sweden and Finland act together in this matter, and we must comply with the same formalities,” the head of the Swedish government said. “Therefore, I intend to go hand in hand with Finland.”

Marin and Kristerson, however, acknowledged that while their countries have some reservations, they can express them “later”.

Denmark and Norway, both NATO members, have refused to host nuclear weapons or permanent bases for foreign military forces.

To date, 28 out of 30 NATO members have ratified the accession of Sweden and Finland, which is expected to be approved unanimously. Only Hungary and Turkey must give their final consent.

Kristerson was on the phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last Wednesday as Sweden tries to convince Ankara to ratify its NATO membership.

The Turkish president has threatened to block the two countries’ accession to NATO since mid-May, accusing Sweden and Finland of harboring Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the YPG, which Ankara considers terrorist organizations.

Erdogan warned that the Turkish parliament would not ratify the accession of the two countries unless Ankara’s extradition requests were granted.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will be received in Turkey on November 4 by President Erdogan to discuss Ankara’s ratification of Sweden and Finland’s accession to NATO, a senior Turkish official told AFP on Friday.

Source: APE/MEB