WASHINGTON — President Biden is hosting the prime minister of Sweden and president of Finland at the White House on Thursday, determined to send a strong signal of support for the two nations in their push to join NATO.
The meeting comes just a day after the longtime neutral countries formally applied for membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the defense pact founded after World War II, though one existing member is seeking to slow things down.
Turkey on Wednesday prevented NATO from initiating the organization's review process to admit Finland and Sweden. Biden and his aides brushed off the move, expressing confidence that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's objections can be resolved.
"We're confident that at the end of the day, Finland and Sweden will have an effective and efficient accession process, and that Turkey's concerns can be addressed," said Jake Sullivan, Biden's national security advisor, during a briefing at the White House.
Turkish officials have criticized both Nordic countries for placing export bans on some military goods to Turkey and supporting "terrorist organizations," including the militant Kurdistan Workers’ Party, known as the PKK. Turkey has been battling the PKK, which the U.S. considers a terrorist group, since the 1980s.
Speaking as if the expansion of NATO were a mere formality, Sullivan called it "a historic event, a watershed moment in European security," declaring that "two nations with a long tradition of neutrality will be joining the world's most powerful defensive alliance."
Biden, who had issued a formal statement earlier in the day declaring his "strong support" for the two nations' NATO bids, told reporters that he remained optimistic.
"I think we’re gonna be OK," he said.
Biden is squeezing in the meeting Thursday with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and Finnish President Sauli Niinistö ahead of his departure for Seoul and a six-day Asia swing aimed at solidifying ties with Indo-Pacific allies to further constrain China and Russia.
