**Helsinki starts charm offensive as it tries to persuade Turkey to back Nato application**
Finland has begun a charm offensive to win over Turkey to its Nato application, suggesting it could buy Turkish drones and loosen arms sales rules as well as insisting it was tough on terrorism.
Pekka Haavisto, Finland’s foreign minister, said on Wednesday that the Nordic country and Turkey could do arms deals with each other if both were members of the western alliance.
“There is some weapon technology from Turkey that could be of interest to Finland. Everyone has followed these drones and other systems. But I don’t want to rush ahead of events. Let’s look at the state of current negotiations first,” he told a press conference.
Turkey is currently holding up Nato applications for both Finland and Sweden, and has accused them of supporting terrorists and having an arms embargo against Ankara.
A move to buy Turkish drones — likely the Bayraktar TB2 that has been deployed by the Ukrainian military against Russian forces — would be seen as a positive gesture in Ankara.
The weapons, which are produced by a company co-owned by president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s son-in-law, have become the flagship product of the burgeoning Turkish defence industry and are heavily promoted by Turkish diplomats in their discussions with foreign governments.
Much of Turkey’s anger over the Nordic nations’ bid to join Nato appears directed against Sweden, which has a long history of accepting Kurdish asylum seekers and has had contact with Syrian groups that Ankara calls terrorists.
I mean…if we get into NATO **and** get to buy some Bayraktars then it sounds like a win-win to be honest. Being able to remind Russia of their failed invasion of Ukraine with the same drones would be worth it alone.
Turkey just wanted some bribes, just the way things work there
Has Finland no shame or self respect? Is this how you treat those who threaten you by not allowing you in the NATO for opportunistic demands from it? With bribes and placates?
They should do the exact opposite, condemn them, since it will place Turkey even further in disdain, denying the NATO an extension of Russia’s border with it, and Moscow being surrounded by NATO territory not just from the West but also the North.
Got a better idea. Kick out Turkey and Hungary and serve notice on Poland to shape up, or..
Yeah, you are genious:):) Why don’t you say anything about Finland’s terrorism support?
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**Helsinki starts charm offensive as it tries to persuade Turkey to back Nato application**
Finland has begun a charm offensive to win over Turkey to its Nato application, suggesting it could buy Turkish drones and loosen arms sales rules as well as insisting it was tough on terrorism.
Pekka Haavisto, Finland’s foreign minister, said on Wednesday that the Nordic country and Turkey could do arms deals with each other if both were members of the western alliance.
“There is some weapon technology from Turkey that could be of interest to Finland. Everyone has followed these drones and other systems. But I don’t want to rush ahead of events. Let’s look at the state of current negotiations first,” he told a press conference.
Turkey is currently holding up Nato applications for both Finland and Sweden, and has accused them of supporting terrorists and having an arms embargo against Ankara.
A move to buy Turkish drones — likely the Bayraktar TB2 that has been deployed by the Ukrainian military against Russian forces — would be seen as a positive gesture in Ankara.
The weapons, which are produced by a company co-owned by president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s son-in-law, have become the flagship product of the burgeoning Turkish defence industry and are heavily promoted by Turkish diplomats in their discussions with foreign governments.
Much of Turkey’s anger over the Nordic nations’ bid to join Nato appears directed against Sweden, which has a long history of accepting Kurdish asylum seekers and has had contact with Syrian groups that Ankara calls terrorists.
I mean…if we get into NATO **and** get to buy some Bayraktars then it sounds like a win-win to be honest. Being able to remind Russia of their failed invasion of Ukraine with the same drones would be worth it alone.
Turkey just wanted some bribes, just the way things work there
Has Finland no shame or self respect? Is this how you treat those who threaten you by not allowing you in the NATO for opportunistic demands from it? With bribes and placates?
They should do the exact opposite, condemn them, since it will place Turkey even further in disdain, denying the NATO an extension of Russia’s border with it, and Moscow being surrounded by NATO territory not just from the West but also the North.
Got a better idea. Kick out Turkey and Hungary and serve notice on Poland to shape up, or..
Yeah, you are genious:):) Why don’t you say anything about Finland’s terrorism support?
That’s a great idea! I love Finnish pragmatism.