Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has once again expressed his objection to Finland and Sweden joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Finnish President Sauli Niinisto and Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson talked to Erdogan separately by phone on Saturday.

Finland and Sweden have maintained neutrality for many years but Russia's invasion of Ukraine has led them to change course.

They applied for NATO membership on Wednesday.

Turkey, a member, objected to their entry. Erdogan claims that the two countries harbor Kurdish militants who belong to organizations designated as terrorists by Turkey and the EU.

The Turkish president's office says that Erdogan told Andersson that the political, financial and weapon support to terrorist organizations should be brought to an end and that Sweden should take concrete and serious steps.

Andersson wrote in her twitter account that she looks forward to strengthening bilateral relations on "peace, security, and the fight against terrorism."

Niinisto termed the call "open and direct" in his twitter account and wrote that "Finland condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations."

All members need to approve any new entry to NATO. Turkey is the sole holdout.