Finland to join NATO on Tuesday

Turkey, the last country to ratify Finland’s membership, will hand in the official paperwork on Tuesday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Monday. Finland will become the 31st member of the world’s biggest military alliance. Finland gave up its historic stance of neutrality last year after Russia invaded Ukraine. 

What’s delaying Sweden’s ratification? Despite the two countries submitting their applications together, Turkey has held up Sweden’s ratification, saying the country harbors terrorist groups. Turkey, Finland, and Sweden signed a memorandum last year to start the accession process. The talks slowed earlier this year when protesters in Sweden burned the Quran. Hungary is also delaying Sweden’s ratification for unclear reasons.

Dig deeper: Listen to Mary Reichard’s report on The World and Everything in It podcast about what the countries’ membership would mean to the United States.