<div style="text-align: justify; "><b style="font-size: 1rem;">NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Friday that Finland would formally become a member within days, as he congratulated its president on clearing the final obstacle to joining.</b><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; "><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"I look forward to raising Finland's flag at NATO HQ in the coming days. Together we are stronger and safer," Stoltenberg wrote on Twitter.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">After months of delays, Turkey's parliament on Thursday removed the last hurdle for Finland by becoming the last member of the US-led military alliance to ratify its application.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Stoltenberg said in separate statement that "Finland has highly capable forces, advanced capabilities, and strong democratic institutions."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"So Finland will bring a lot to our alliance," he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">NATO foreign ministers are meeting at the alliance's headquarters in Brussels next week, when it is expected the membership could be formalised.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year upended European security and pushed Finland and its neighbour Sweden to drop decades of non-alignment and seek to join NATO's protective umbrella.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Stockholm application remains stuck, however, because of ongoing resistance from both Turkey and Hungary.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">But Stoltenberg insisted that "all allies agree that a rapid conclusion of the ratification process for Sweden will be in everyone's interest,"</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"I look forward to also welcoming Sweden as a full member of the NATO family as soon as possible," he said. AFP</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>