U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday the "time is now" for Turkey to drop its objections to Sweden joining NATO but said the Biden administration also believed that Turkey should be provided with upgraded F-16 fighters "as soon as possible." Blinken maintained that the administration had not linked the two issues but acknowledged that some U.S. lawmakers had. President Joe Biden implicitly linked the two issues in a phone call to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday. "I spoke to Erdogan and he still wants to work on something on the F-16s. I told him we wanted a deal with Sweden. So let's get that done," Biden said. Also Read: Finland could join NATO ahead of Sweden: Defense minister Still, Blinken insisted the two issues were distinct. However, he stressed that the completion of both would dramatically strengthen European security. "Both of these are vital, in our judgement, to European security," Blinken told reporters at a joint news conference in the northern Swedish city of Lulea with Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson. "We believe that both should go forward as quickly as possible; that is to say Sweden's accession and moving forward on the F-16 package more broadly." "We believe the time is now," Blinken said. He declined to predict when Turkey and Hungary, the only other NATO member not yet to have ratified Sweden's membership, would grant their approval. But, he said, "we have no doubt that it can be, it should be, and we expect it to be" completed by the time alliance leaders meet in Vilnius, Lithuania in July at an annual summit. Also Read: Erdogan might approve Finland’s NATO bid, ‘shock’ Sweden Fresh from a strong re-election victory over the weekend, Erdogan may be willing to ease his objections to Sweden's membership. Erdogan accuses Sweden of being too soft on groups Ankara considers to be terrorists, and a series of Quran-burning protests in Stockholm angered his religious support base — making his tough stance even more popular. Kristersson said the two sides had been in contact since Sunday's vote and voiced no hesitancy in speaking about the benefits Sweden would bring to NATO "when we join the alliance." Blinken is in Sweden attending a meeting of the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council and will travel to Oslo, Norway on Wednesday for a gathering of NATO foreign ministers, before going on to newly admitted alliance member Finland on Friday. Also Read: Erdogan says no support for Sweden's NATO bid Speaking in Oslo ahead of the foreign ministers' meeting, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the goal was to have Sweden inside the grouping before the leaders' summit in July. "There are no guarantees, but it's absolutely possible to reach a solution and enable the decision on full membership for Sweden by the Vilnius summit," Stoltenberg said.  

Finland's main conservative party claimed victory in parliamentary elections Sunday in a tight three-way race that saw right-wing populists take second place, leaving Prime Minister Sanna Marin's Social Democratic Party in third, dashing her hopes for reelection. The center-right National Coalition Party (NCP) claimed victory with all of the votes counted, coming out on top at 20.8%. They were followed by right-wing populist party The Finns with 20.1%, while the Social Democrats garnered 19.9%. With the top three parties each getting around 20% of the vote, no party is in position to form a government alone. Over 2,400 candidates from 22 parties were vying for the 200 seats in the Nordic country’s parliament. “Based on this result, talks over forming a new government to Finland will be initiated under the leadership of the National Coalition Party,” said the party's elated leader Petteri Orpo, as he claimed victory surrounded by supporters gathered in a restaurant in the capital, Helsinki. Marin, who at age 37 is one of Europe’s youngest leaders, has received international praise for her vocal support of Ukraine and her prominent role, along with President Sauli Niinistö, in advocating for Finland’s successful application to join NATO. Also Read: Hungarian parliament approves Finland’s bid to join NATO The 53-year-old Orpo, Finland's former finance minister and likely new prime minister, assured that the Nordic country's solidarity with Kyiv would remain strong during his tenure. “First to Ukraine: we stand by you, with you," Orpo told the Associated Press at NCP's victory event. “We cannot accept this terrible war. And we will do all that is needed to help Ukraine, Ukrainian people because they fight for us. This is clear.” "And the message to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is: go away from Ukraine because you will lose,” Orpo said. Finland, which shares a long border with Russia, cleared the last hurdles of becoming a NATO member earlier in the week as alliance members Turkey and Hungary signed off the country's membership bid. Also Read: Erdogan hints Turkey may ratify Finland's NATO membership NCP's share of votes translates into 48 seats in the Eduskunta, Finland's Parliament, while The Finns, a nationalist party running largely on an anti-immigration and anti-European Union agenda, is to get 46 seats and Marin's Social Democrats 43 seats respectively. Observers say the result means a power shift in Finland's political scene as the nation is now likely to get a new center-right government with nationalist tones. The government will replace the center-left Cabinet by Marin, a highly popular prime minister at home and abroad since 2019. Government formation talks led by the NCP are expected to start in the coming days with goal of putting together a Cabinet enjoying a majority at the Parliament. “I trust the Finnish tradition of negotiating with all parties, and trying to find the best possible majority government for Finland," Orpo told the AP. “And you know what is important for us? It’s that we are an active member of the European Union. We build up NATO-Finland, and we fix our economy. We boost our economic growth and create new jobs. These are the crucial, main, important issues we have to write into the government program,” he said. The positions of Marin's party on the Finnish economy emerged as a main campaign theme and were challenged by conservatives, who remain critical of the Social Democrats' economic policies and are unlikely to partner with them. Orpo had hammered on Finland's growing government debt and the need to make budget cuts throughout the election. NCP is open to cooperation with The Finns as the two parties largely share view on developing Finland's economy though have differences in climate policies and EU issues. While Russia’s invasion of Ukraine prompted Finland to seek NATO membership in May 2022, neither the historic decision to abandon the nation’s non-alignment policy nor the war emerged as major campaign issues as there was a large consensus among the parties on membership. Finland, which is expected to join NATO in the coming weeks, is a European Union member. The initial voter turnout in the election was 71.9%, slightly down from the 2019 election.

Referring to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's leadership, Ambassador of Finland to Bangladesh with residence in New Delhi Ritva Koukku-Ronde termed Bangladesh a global role model in many aspects, including women’s empowerment and gender equality. She also lauded the socio-economic advancements taking place in Bangladesh. The ambassador had a farewell meeting with State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md. Shahriar Alam at the latter’s office on Tuesday and discussed issues of mutual interest. The state minister thanked the Finnish ambassador for her efforts and contributions in further strengthening bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Finland. Also Read: Erdogan hints Turkey may ratify Finland's NATO membership He briefed the Finnish ambassador on the steady socio-economic development of Bangladesh over the last 14 years under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The state minister also touched upon Bangladesh’s achievements in green RMG factories, solar home systems and women’s increased participation in the workforce, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Also Read: Finland’s Parliament gives final approval for NATO bid The two sides also discussed various other bilateral and international issues of mutual interest and concern, including renewable energy and waste to energy, digital technology and cybersecurity, shipbuilding and ship-recycling, bio-based material development, climate change, food and energy security, Rohingya crisis, war in Ukraine and cooperation in international fora.    

Finland’s defense minister said Saturday that his country will join NATO without waiting for Sweden if its Nordic neighbor’s accession is held up by the Turkish government. Mikko Savola told The Associated Press on Saturday that Finland would prefer that that the two countries join the alliance together, but it wouldn’t hold up the process if Turkey decides to approve Finland, but not Sweden, as it has warned. “No, no. Then we will join,” Savola said in an interview on the sidelines of a security conference in Munich. Since they broke with decades of non-alignment in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, Finland and Sweden have insisted they want to join NATO together. But Turkey’s reluctance to accept Sweden unless it steps up pressure on Kurdish exile groups has made it more likely the two will have to join the alliance at different speeds. “Sweden is our closest partner,” Savola said. “Almost every week our defense forces are practicing together and so on. It’s a very deep cooperation and we also trust fully each other. But it’s in Türkiye’s hands now.” Speaking later Saturday at a panel in Munich, Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin struck a similar note. “Of course, we cannot influence how some country would ratify, but our message is that we are willing to join and would prefer to join together,” she said. All NATO countries except Turkey and Hungary have already given both countries the green light to join the alliance. Hungary has said it will do so soon, but Turkey says Sweden hasn’t done enough to meet Turkish national security concerns, causing a rift in NATO at a time when the U.S. and other allies are seeking to project a united front against Russia. In recent weeks, NATO officials have played down the significance of the two nations joining simultaneously. “The main is issue is not whether Finland and Sweden are joining at the same time. The main issue is that Finland and Sweden join as soon as possible, and it is of course a Turkish decision whether to ratify both protocols or only one protocol,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters in Munich on Friday. Savola said he hopes Finland, which shares a 1,340-kilometer (830-mile) border with Russia, will become a member of the alliance before a NATO summit in July. Until then, Savola said, Finland isn’t worried about the security situation, noting Finland has a conscription army with a wartime strength of 280,000 soldiers, 95% of them reservists, and plans to buy F-35 fighter jets from the U.S., while also investing in its naval and land forces. “We are strong and our willingness to defend the country is also strong,” Savola said. Finland has supported Ukraine with weapons from the start of the war. Savola said the military support amounts to 600 million euros so far. The country has said it will participate in a joint effort by European countries to deliver Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, but hasn’t specified whether it will hand over any of its own tanks. “There are many ways to join. There are those tanks, of course, training, spare parts and logistics,” he said. “We are making those decisions quite soon in Finland.”    

Finland’s prime minister says she did not take any drugs during a “wild” party in a private home, adding she did nothing wrong when letting her hair down and partying with friends. A video posted on a social media shows six people dancing and mimicking a song in front of a camera, including Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin. Later in the video, Marin, 36, is on her knees on what seems to be the dance floor with her arms behind her head dancing while mimicking a song. “I’m disappointed that it has become public. I spent the evening with friends. Partied, pretty wild, yes. Danced and sang,” she was quoted Thursday as saying by Finnish broadcaster YLE. “I have not used drugs myself, or anything other than alcohol. I’ve danced, sung and partied and done perfectly legal things. I have also not been in a situation where I would know that others are doing it that way,” Marin said, according to the Hufvudstadsbladet newspaper. It was unclear when the party, which reportedly was attended by Ilmari Nurminen, a member of Eduskunta, or parliament, for Marin's Social Democratic Party, and the Finnish singer Alma, was held. Read:Turkey again asks Sweden, Finland to extradite suspects Marin — who in December 2019 became Finland’s youngest prime minister ever — said she spends her free time with friends just like others her age and that she intends to continue being the same person as before. “I hope that’s accepted. We live in a democracy and in elections everyone can decide these issues,” she said, according to YLE. Critics have pointed out that Finland, which shares a 1,340-kilometer (832-mile) land border with Russia, faces high electricity prices, among other issues from Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The country recently dropped its long-neutral stance and asked to join NATO. In July, Marin attended a popular Finnish rock festival. In December she made a public apology after going out clubbing until 4 a.m. without her work phone, hence failing to be informed that she had been in close contact with a COVID-19 positive person. She didn't test positive.

Turkey has sent letters to Sweden and Finland renewing its request for the extradition of people it considers terror suspects, the Turkish justice minister said Wednesday. Turkey last week lifted its deal-breaking objections to Sweden and Finland’s NATO accession. But Ankara has warned that it could still block the process if the two Nordic countries fail to meet its demand to extradite people suspected of links to outlawed Kurdish groups, or to the network of an exiled cleric accused over a failed coup in 2016. Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag told Haber Global television in an interview that letters were sent renewing Turkey’s requests for the extradition of suspects for whom earlier requests had been rejected. The letters also “reminded” the two countries about suspects whose cases are still pending, he said. Turkey, Sweden and Finland signed a joint memorandum last week that allowed NATO to move ahead with inviting the Nordic countries to the military alliance that seeks to enlarge and strengthen in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. With the memorandum, Finland and Sweden agreed to address Turkey's “pending deportation or extradition requests of terror suspects expeditiously and thoroughly ... in accordance with the European Convention on Extradition.” Turkey had objected to Finland and Sweden's membership, accusing them of supporting the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, and other groups that it says pose a threat to its security. It demanded that Finland and Sweden extradite wanted individuals and lift arms restrictions imposed after Turkey’s 2019 military incursion into northeast Syria. The Nordic countries’ accession still needs to be approved by the parliaments of all 30 NATO members — a process that could take months — and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has threatened that Turkey's Parliament could refuse to do so.

Finland’s Ambassador to Bangladesh Ritva Koukku Ronde has offered the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources to work with the Nordic Research Council to conduct research for the development of modern technology. She made this offer during a meeting with State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid at his office at the ministry on Wednesday. Expressing her country’s interest to expand its activities in Bangladesh, the Finnish envoy said that she believes that Finland has a good scope to work in different sectors of modern technology. Finland can work together with Bangladesh to supply modern technology, she opined.   Welcoming the offer, Nasrul Hamid said that there are huge opportunities for investment in different segments of the power and energy sector including, renewable energy, smart grid, mini-grid, wind power, and setting up charging stations in the country. READ: Finland eager to support Bangladesh’s sustainable development: Envoy Both the ambassador and the state minister discussed different issues of mutual interests during their meeting. Trade and Investment cosular of New Delhi Embassy of Finland Kimmo Siira, Economy and Commercial Matters Rai Chakrabarti were present on the occasion. 

Finland is keen to cooperate with Bangladesh in the field of sustainable and renewable energy, said Finnish non-resident ambassador to Bangladesh Ritva Koukku-Ronde on Wednesday.  The envoy, who resides in New Delhi, said this while paying a courtesy call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the latter’s official residence Ganobhaban. Also read: Exercise austerity amid global price hike of goods: PM to all PM’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed reporters after the meeting. The envoy handed over a letter of greetings from Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin to Sheikh Hasina, marking the 50th anniversary of Finland-Bangladesh diplomatic relations. The Bangladesh Prime Minister also conveyed her greetings to her Finnish counterpart on the occasion. The Finnish diplomat said the cooperation between Bangladesh and Finnish multinational telecommunications company Nokia can be strengthened. Ritva said her country will work on the Rohingya issue in the United Nations agencies.

NATO envoys failed to reach a consensus on Wednesday about whether to start membership talks with Finland and Sweden, diplomats said, as Turkey renewed its objections to the two Nordic countries joining. The envoys met at NATO headquarters in Brussels after Finland and Sweden’s ambassadors submitted written applications to join the military organization, in a move that marks one of the biggest geopolitical ramifications of Russia’s war on Ukraine — and which could rewrite Europe’s security map. The diplomats, who did not want to be named because of the sensitive nature of the proceedings, declined to say precisely who or what was holding up the procedure. They pointed to the messages from many of the 30 NATO allies welcoming Finland and Sweden’s request. Lithuanian Ambassador Deividas Matulionis told Swedish and Finnish media that the envoys had exchanged views about their national security. “The discussion was about that, but it is up to Turkey to comment,” he said. NATO officials also refused to provide details. They underlined remarks earlier Wednesday by Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, that “we are determined to work through all issues and reach a rapid conclusion.” Meetings and diplomatic outreach aimed at resolving the problem will continue. But Turkey is the only ally to have clearly voiced its opposition. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan insists that Finland and Sweden must show more respect for Turkish sensitivities about terrorism. He is refusing to budge over what he says is their alleged support for Kurdish militants. Erdogan accuses the two countries of turning a blind eye to activities of the banned Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, even though the group is on the European Union’s anti-terror blacklist. Also Read: Russian neighbor Finland announces it wants to join NATO “You will not hand over terrorists to us, but you will ask us to allow you to join NATO. NATO is a security entity. It is a security agency. Therefore, we cannot say ‘yes’ to depriving this security organization of security,” he said Wednesday, in an address to ruling party lawmakers. The day had started off on an upbeat note. Stoltenberg had said that the military alliance stands ready to seize a historic moment and move quickly on allowing Finland and Sweden to join its ranks, after the two countries submitted their membership requests. The official applications set a security clock ticking. Russia, whose war on Ukraine spurred them to join the military organization, has warned that it wouldn’t welcome such a move, and could respond. “I warmly welcome the requests by Finland and Sweden to join NATO. You are our closest partners,“ Stoltenberg said. “All allies agree on the importance of NATO enlargement. We all agree that we must stand together, and we all agree that this is an historic moment which we must seize.” “This is a good day at a critical moment for our security,” a beaming Stoltenberg said, as he stood alongside the two envoys, with NATO, Finnish and Swedish flags at their backs. Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded that the alliance stop expanding toward Russia’s borders, and several NATO allies, led by the United States and Britain, have signaled that they stand ready to provide security support to Finland and Sweden should the Kremlin try to provoke or destabilize them during the time it takes to become full members. The countries will only benefit from NATO’s Article 5 security guarantee — the part of the alliance’s founding treaty that pledges that any attack on one member would be considered an attack of them all — once the membership ratification process is concluded, probably in a few months. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson welcomed their applications in a tweet and said that “Putin’s appalling ambitions have transformed the geopolitical contours of our continent.” Germany, Italy, the Baltic states and the Czech Republic all spoke favorably about the candidates.    

Finland declared Sunday that it wants to join NATO, as a senior official with the western military alliance expressed hope that — with Russia's military advance appearing to falter — Ukraine can win the war. President Sauli Niinisto and Prime Minister Sanna Marin made the announcement that Finland would seek membership of NATO during a joint news conference at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki. The previously neutral Nordic country shares a long border with Russia. “This is a historic day. A new era begins,” Niinisto said. The Finnish Parliament is expected to endorse the decision in coming days. A formal membership application will then be submitted to NATO headquarters in Brussels, most likely at some point next week. Also read: Why Finland, Sweden joining NATO will be big deal The announcement came as top diplomats from the 30 NATO member states met in Berlin to discuss providing further support to Ukraine and moves by Finland, Sweden and others to join NATO in the face of threats from Russia. “The brutal invasion (by) Russia is losing momentum,” NATO Deputy-Secretary General Mircea Geoana told reporters early Sunday. “We know that with the bravery of the Ukrainian people and army, and with our help, Ukraine can win this war,” he said. Geoana, who was chairing the meeting while NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg recovers from a COVID-19 infection, said Ukraine's supporters were “united, we are strong, will continue to help Ukraine in winning this war.” Sweden has also already taken steps toward joining the alliance, while Georgia's bid is again being discussed despite dire warnings from Moscow about the consequences if its neighbor becomes part of NATO. “Finland and Sweden are already the closest partners of NATO,” Geoana said, adding that he expected allies to view their applications positively. Nordic NATO member Norway said it strongly welcomed Finland’s decision to seek membership. Norwegian Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt described Helsinki’s move as “a turning point” for the Nordic region's defense and security policies. “Finnish membership in NATO will be good for Finland, good for the Nordic region, and good for NATO. Finland has Norway’s full support," Huitfeldt said in comments emailed to The Associated Press. Huitfeldt said the Norwegian government would facilitate “a swift consent to ratification by the Norwegian Parliament” for Finland's accession into NATO. “We are now seeing unprecedented unity in NATO. With the Finnish membership, we will further strengthen the Nordic flank of the military alliance,” Huitfeldt said. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said her country and others made clear during a dinner late Saturday that they would be willing to fast-track the national ratification process for both Finland and Sweden. Also read: Finland's leaders advocate NATO membership 'without delay' “If these two countries are deciding to join, they can join very quickly,” she said. Denmark's foreign minister dismissed suggestions that objections from Russian President Vladimir Putin could hinder the alliance from letting in new members. “Each and every European country has a fundamental right to choose their own security arrangement," Jeppe Kofod told reporters. “We see now a world where the enemy of democracy number one is Putin and the thinking that he represents,” he said, adding that NATO would also stand with other countries, such as Georgia, which he said were being “instrumentalized” by Russia. On the sidelines of the meeting, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met earlier Sunday with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba to discuss the impact of the war and how to get Ukraine’s grain to international markets. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said Blinken “underscored the United States’ enduring commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russia’s unprovoked war.” Britain's top diplomat said NATO members would also discuss security issues beyond Europe during their meeting Sunday — a reference to growing unease among democratic nations about the rise of China. "As well as protecting Euro-Atlantic security, we also need to watch out for Indo-Pacific security,” Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said. The meeting follows a gathering of foreign ministers from the Group of Seven leading economies on Germany's Baltic Sea coast this week. Officials there expressed strong support for Ukraine and warned that Russia's blockade of grain exports from Ukrainian ports risks stoking a global food crisis.