Facts: NATO meeting in Bucharest
The NATO foreign ministers’ meeting is held in Bucharest, Romania, on November 29-30.
The chairman of the meeting is NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Several current NATO issues are to be addressed, including more support for Ukraine, as well as the work to implement NATO’s updated strategic concept that was decided in Madrid last summer.
The partner countries Bosnia-Herzegovina, Moldova and Georgia have been called to a session to discuss what support the countries need due to the deteriorating security situation in Europe.
China is also expected to rise. In NATO’s new strategic concept, China is called a “challenge to our interests, our security and our values”
As an “invitee”, Sweden participates in the meetings but not in the decision-making.
So far, 28 out of 30 allies have ratified Sweden’s and Finland’s accession protocol. Only Hungary and Turkey remain.
The foreign ministers of the NATO countries are meeting for a two-day meeting in the Romanian capital. As prospective members, so-called invitees, Sweden and Finland are also invited.
It is the first time a Swedish foreign minister has participated on those premises.
During the meeting, Sweden and Finland will have an opportunity to see each other hand in hand with Turkey. Foreign Minister Mevlüt Cavusoglu opened discussions on the NATO applications on Monday.
— We will meet the foreign ministers of Sweden and Finland tomorrow (Tuesday) in Bucharest in a trilateral format, Cavusoglu was quoted by the Turkish television channel NTV Television.
Ahead of the NATO meeting, the alliance’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has pressed for ratification.
No breakthrough
On Friday, he called on Turkey and Hungary to give their approval as soon as possible.
— It is time to complete the accession process and welcome (Sweden and Finland) as full members of our alliance. This will make them safer, NATO stronger and the Euro-Atlantic area safer, Stoltenberg said.
However, assessors do not expect any major progress in Bucharest. Foreign Minister Tobias Billström (M) does not believe in any breakthrough, but sees an opportunity to “exchange views” with Turkey.
“My conversation with the Turkish minister will of course revolve around the fulfillment of the trilateral memorandum,” says Billström to TT.
Budapest recently announced that it plans to give Sweden and Finland the thumbs up in February. But the protracted talks between Sweden and Turkey are believed to continue well into 2023.
Billström will shortly go to Turkey as part of that work, he states.
Foreign Minister Tobias Billström (M). Archive image.
At the same time, the government’s chief negotiator Oscar Stenström stated on Friday that Turkey believes that Sweden is making progress in the negotiations.
Jens Stoltenberg has also started to go further in his security assurances to Sweden and Finland.
“It is absolutely clear: If there were to be an attack or an aggressive act against Finland or Sweden, it is inconceivable that NATO would not react,” he said on Friday.
More arms to Ukraine
The dominant issue at the NATO summit, however, is the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and the imminent need for more support for the country.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba attends an informal working dinner to talk about what is needed, both urgently and in the longer term. At the top of the wish list is increased protection against Russian robots. But Stoltenberg has said that he also expects promises from the member states about increased deliveries of other things when Ukraine is now facing a long and cold winter.