THE Turkish parliament has ratified Finland’s bid to join Nato, removing the last obstacle to the Nordic country’s long-delayed accession to the Western military alliance.

Thursday night’s vote, which is likely to raise tensions along the 830 mile-border between Russia and Finland, took place days after Hungary’s parliament approved Finland’s application.

Nato secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the Turkish vote, tweeting: “This will make the whole Nato family stronger and safer.”

Finland and Sweden abandoned their decades-long policy of non-alignment and rushed to join the the 30-member military alliance after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began last year.

Full unanimity is required to admit new countries to Nato.

Turkey and Hungary were the last two members to ratify the Finnish application, but so far they have blocked Sweden from joining the alliance.

The Turkish government accuses Sweden of being too lenient towards groups it claims are terrorist organisations and security threats, including militant Kurdish groups and people associated with a 2016 coup attempt.

More recently, Ankara was angered by a series of demonstrations in Sweden, including a protest by an anti-Islam activist who burnt the Koran outside the Turkish embassy.

Hungary’s government complains that some Swedish politicians have made derisive statements about the state of Hungary’s democracy and played an active role in ensuring that billions of euros of European Union funding was frozen over alleged rule-of-law and democracy violations.

Turkish officials have said that, unlike Sweden, Finland fulfilled its obligations under a memorandum signed last year, in which the two countries pledged to address Ankara’s security concerns.

“As a Nato member, we naturally had some expectations and requests regarding the security concerns of our country,” Akif Cagatay Kilic, a legislator from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party, told parliament before the vote.

“I would like to underline the concrete steps and their implementation by Finland, which supported and shaped the decision we are taking here.”

Mr Kilic added: “I’m aware that there is a large number of people watching us from Finland … We can say to them: ‘Welcome to Nato’.”

Some opposition parties voiced criticism of the Turkish government’s position toward the two Nordic countries.

Peoples Democracy Party legislator Hisyar Ozsoy said: “Unfortunately, [Mr Erdogan’s party] turned the right to veto Finland and Sweden’s membership bids into a tool for blackmail and threat.”

Earlier this week, the president told reporters that Turkey still expected more from Sweden before its membership of Nato would be ratified.