Sweden is set to join NATO as the military alliance’s 32nd member following its acceptance by Turkey.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced on July 10 that a meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson resulted in an understanding being reached between the two nations.
Sweden initially requested membership in NATO alongside Finland in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. Any NATO member is allowed to veto the entry of any potential member, and for the past year, Turkey has rejected Sweden’s admission into the alliance.
Turkey previously vetoed the Nordic nation’s membership bid, saying Sweden provided safe haven to members of the Kurdistan Workers Party, which it considers to be a terrorist organization.
An initial arrangement was made between Turkey and Sweden earlier in the year, but Turkey suspended talks after the Swedish government permitted a protest to take place outside of a Turkish embassy, where one protestor burned a copy of the Quran.
A joint statement issued by Turkey and Sweden on July 10 said that Sweden wouldn’t provide support to the Kurdish groups and would actively support efforts to help Turkey’s own accession into the European Union.
Mr. Erdogan’s apparent green light of Sweden’s accession brings an end to months of drama over an issue that had strained the bloc as war has raged in Ukraine.
“I’m glad to announce … that President Erdogan has agreed to forward the accession protocol for Sweden to the grand national assembly as soon as possible and work closely with the assembly to ensure ratification,” Mr. Stoltenberg told a press conference, describing it as a “historic” step.
“This has been a good day for Sweden,” Mr. Kristersson told reporters, saying the July 10 joint statement represented “a very big step” toward the final ratification of Sweden’s membership of NATO.
Mr. Stoltenberg said Mr. Erdogan had agreed to push ratification in parliament “as soon as possible” but didn’t give a specific date. It took about two weeks for Turkey’s parliament to ratify Finland’s membership.
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