Turkey has agreed to Sweden’s accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg made the announcement after meeting with the leaders of Turkey and Sweden in Vilnius, Lithuania on the 10th, a day before the NATO Summit.
According to Secretary-General Stoltenberg, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Türkiye has committed to forwarding Sweden’s ratification of NATO accession to Parliament as soon as possible and working closely with Parliament to pass ratification.
Sweden, which has maintained military non-alignment and neutrality, applied for NATO membership with Finland in May last year when the war broke out in Ukraine.
However, Turkey has opposed Sweden’s joining NATO, saying Sweden has a friendly policy towards the activities of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which it has designated as a terrorist group.
Meanwhile, before leaving for Lithuania on the same day (10th), President Erdogan said he could agree to Sweden’s NATO membership if the European Union (EU) opens the way for Turkey to join the EU.
VOA News
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2023-07-10 22:34:30
