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The German Parliament ratifies the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO

BERLIN, July 8.

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The German Parliament ratifies the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO

BERLIN, July 8. (DPA/EP) -

The German Parliament on Friday approved the applications of Finland and Sweden to join NATO, a decision that has received the support of the parties of the ruling center-left coalition and the conservative alliance between the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU ) and the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU).

Thus, part of the parliamentarians of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) have also supported the entry of these countries into the Alliance, while The Left has voted against.

"Today we are reinforcing the democratic values ​​of NATO," said the German Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Tobias Lindner, during the debate prior to the vote, according to the German news agency DPA.

Finland and Sweden had for decades refused to apply to join NATO, although they have changed their position as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, unleashed on February 24 by order of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Both countries took another step on Tuesday in their entry into NATO with the signing of their accession protocol, with which they become 'de facto' members of the military alliance in the absence of formal ratification. After that, the director general of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, spoke of "historic day".

The access of Sweden and Finland was unblocked at the Madrid summit on June 29 and 30, in which the leaders invited both candidates, after culminating in the prelude to the meeting an agreement for Turkey to lift its veto in exchange for a greater commitment of the Scandinavian countries in the fight against the terrorist group Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).