Finland is sticking to its plan to join NATO at the same time as Nordic neighbour Sweden, and hopes to do so no later than July, Finnish foreign minister Pekka Haavisto said on Monday.
However, Haavisto said Finland will stick with Sweden, its closest military partner, during the application process.
Presidential and parliamentary elections will be held in Turkey in May and many analysts believe that it will be hard to make progress before that. Finland and Sweden had been hoping for a rapid accession process and were taken by surprise by Turkey's objections. That has led to speculation Finland - which shares a 1,300-km border with Russia - could proceed without Sweden.
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