According to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Finland will become the 31st member of NATO in the near future as Turkey’s parliament voted in favor of their membership. All NATO member parliaments must ratify any newcomers. This vote by Turkey’s parliament came after President Tayyip Erdogan claimed that Finland had made significant efforts to keep promises regarding cracking down on groups that Ankara sees as terrorists and freeing up defense exports. Sweden, on the other hand, is still waiting for Turkey to vote on their membership as they have not taken appropriate action against groups seen by Ankara as terrorists. Both Finland and Sweden applied for NATO membership last year in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but the process has been hindered by Turkey and Hungary. Tensions have risen since the first foreign journalist was arrested on spying charges by Russia. The Kremlin provided no documentary or video evidence, and the White House has urged US citizens living or traveling in Russia to leave immediately. Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko has said that they will bolster their defenses if needed in response to Finland becoming a member of NATO.