Bundestag and Bundesrat agree to Finland and Sweden joining NATO. Only the left faction voted no in parliament.
+++ 2 p.m.: After the Bundestag, the Bundesrat also approved the NATO accession of Sweden and Finland on Friday. The chamber of states let the ratification law pass on Friday – a few hours after the decision of the Bundestag. There, all factions apart from the left had voted to join. Now Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has to issue the ratification certificate and have it deposited with the US government in Washington – according to the accession rules. Accession will be completed when Sweden and Finland deposit their accession documents in Washington after the approval of all NATO members.
+++ 10.45 a.m.: With a large majority, the Bundestag has given the green light for Sweden and Finland to join NATO. Only the left-wing faction voted against the ratification law presented by the federal government in the plenum on Friday. For accession to take effect, all NATO states must agree to it and complete the ratification process.
In the plenary debate before the vote, representatives of government and opposition groups agreed that the NATO accession of the two northern European countries was historic. “We are witnessing how European history is being written,” said Federal Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD).
Lambrecht referred to the long tradition of neutrality in both countries: “One only says goodbye to such a fundamental conviction when something really drastic has happened,” she said. The Russian attack on Ukraine was such a turning point.
The expansion of NATO sends a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Lambrecht said. “We are strengthening the very security architecture, the peace order that Putin wants to destroy,” she said. “The West, which he despises so much, is getting stronger, not weaker.”
The opposition factions of the CDU/CSU and AfD also agreed to the proposal – in the case of the AfD, however, there were some dissenting votes and abstentions. The Left was the only parliamentary group to vote against it. She justified her no with promises made by Sweden and Finland to the NATO country Turkey – such as the promise to no longer support certain Kurdish groups.
The price that NATO has to pay to Turkey is “too high,” said left-wing foreign expert Gregor Gysi. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will “be even bolder after this success”. However, the left also showed fundamental understanding for Sweden’s and Finland’s desire to improve their security situation by joining NATO.
After the Bundestag vote, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier will issue the ratification certificate and deposit it with NATO. Germany is among the first round of states to complete the ratification process in parliament.
First report from Friday, July 8, 10:00 a.m.: Berlin – The Bundestag will decide this Friday (July 8th) on the German approval of the Nato– Entry of Sweden and Finland. The deputies deal with a draft law that the traffic light coalition SPD, greens and FDP presented together with the opposition Union. Ratification by the German parliament before the summer break is considered certain.
The move by Sweden and Finland is a direct response to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. On Tuesday, the ambassadors of the 30 alliance states had already signed the so-called accession protocols at the headquarters in Brussels in the presence of the foreign ministers of the two Nordic countries.
Finland and Sweden joining NATO: Turkey as a factor of uncertainty
These are now going through the national ratification processes in order to become effective. Canada and Estonia have already done so. The main factor of uncertainty is Turkey. To the annoyance of the other allies, the country had already delayed the start of the accession process for several weeks, citing Sweden and Finland’s alleged support for organizations such as the banned Kurdish Workers’ Party PKK, the Syrian Kurdish militia YPG and the Gülen movement.
Working on another agenda item that is due in the Bundestag on Friday CDU and CSU also working together with the government coalition: Parliament wants to set up a commission of inquiry that, with scientific support, will examine the almost 20-year deployment of the Bundeswehr in Afghanistan illuminated. The designated head of the Commission Michael Müller (SPD) called for more precise objectives for future foreign assignments. In Afghanistan, the first ten years were about the fight against terror. For the second ten years, however, there was no clear new order, he told the editorial network Germany.
Topic in the Bundestag: The withdrawal of the Bundeswehr from Afghanistan
Also on Friday, a committee of inquiry into Afghanistan was constituted in the Bundestag. He is supposed to deal with the sometimes chaotic conditions during the withdrawal of the Bundeswehr and the evacuation mission after the Taliban took power. The appointment of the twelve-member body was decided by Parliament on Friday night.
By evaluating documents and questioning witnesses, the committee aims to clarify what mistakes were made at the time and what consequences can be drawn from them for the future.
The Bundeswehr left Afghanistan in June 2021 after almost 20 years. In August, Germany took part in an international evacuation operation after the militant Islamist Taliban had taken power in the Hindu Kush within a very short time.
In addition, the Bundestag decides on the Bundeswehr missions in Kosovo and, after a long break, again in Bosnia-Herzegovina. (skr with AFP/dpa)
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