Vilnius, MINA – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has agreed to support Sweden’s bid to join NATO, after a year of blocking the move citing Turkiye’s security concerns.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced on Monday that Erdogan agreed to forward Sweden’s membership bid to the Turkish parliament, Al-Jazeera reported.
After talks with Erdogan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Vilnius, Lithuania, Stoltenberg said Turkiye had agreed to move forward.
“I am happy to announce… President Erdogan has agreed to forward the protocol of Sweden’s accession to the Grand National Assembly as soon as possible and work closely with the assembly to ensure its ratification,” Stoltenberg told a news conference. “This is a historic day.”
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NATO membership requires the approval of all members of the military alliance. Turkiye has been holding back Sweden’s NATO accession since last year, accusing Stockholm of harboring Kurdish activists deemed by Ankara as “terrorists”.
A series of demonstrations in Stockholm, including anti-Islam activists burning Korans, also angered Turkiye officials.
The joint statement, issued after the three-way talks, said Turkiye and Sweden would work together on “counterterrorism coordination” and boost trade ties. (T/RE1/P2)
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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