Finland Parliament approves country's accession to NATO

Image credit: Reuters

Helsinki: Finland`s parliament has approved the country`s accession to NATO, with 188 out of 200 lawmakers supporting the decision and eight voting against, a Sputnik correspondent reported on Tuesday.US President Joe Biden will host his Finnish counterpart and the Swedish prime minister at the White House on May 19 for talks on the two nations` NATO applications, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Tuesday.

"On Thursday, President Biden will welcome Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson of Sweden and President Sauli Niinisto of Finland to the White House. The leaders will discuss Finland`s and Sweden`s NATO applications and European security, as well as strengthening our close partnerships across a range of global issues and support for Ukraine," she said.

Notably, Sweden and Finland will jointly apply for NATO membership on Wednesday, Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said today, according to Sputnik news agency."We are going to jointly submit applications to NATO tomorrow," Andersson said.

Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto signed Helsninki`s NATO membership bid on Tuesday, Sputnik reported citing a live broadcast on the government`s website. "This letter is addressed to NATO Secretary General (Jens) Stoltenberg," Haavisto said when signing the document. The letter will be delivered to NATO headquarters by Finland`s envoy to the alliance.