Berlin (dpa) – NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said he does not expect the anticipated accession of Finland and Sweden to the defence alliance to be delayed by Turkey’s objections.

Turkey had made it clear that it did not want to block accession, Stoltenberg said at the end of a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Berlin on Sunday.

“I’m confident that we will be able to address the concerns that Turkey has expressed in a way that doesn’t delay the membership or the accession process,” Stoltenberg said.

Turkey had earlier said it would only agree to Finland and Sweden joining NATO if certain conditions were met, potentially threatening the defence alliance’s show of unity in its dealings with Russia.