Turkey’s parliament is set to hold a debate this week over Sweden’s bid to join the NATO military alliance, as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan seeks to improve defense relations with US-led allies.
The foreign affairs committee will discuss the matter on Thursday according to a notice on parliament’s website. The debate will bring Sweden a step closer to becoming a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization after almost a year and a half of delay. Turkey’s nod would still require an approval from the entire assembly, where Erdogan’s ruling AK Party and its allies hold a majority of seats and the president has indicated he is now in favor.
Turkey’s plan to debate the Nordic country’s accession comes about two weeks ahead of a ministerial meeting of NATO in Brussels. Erdogan has linked the membership issue to negotiations with the US to purchase new F-16 fighter jets, and is also seeking the backing of European allies for a similar warplane deal.
Turkey has been one of the two last holdouts — alongside Hungary — blocking NATO’s northern enlargement. The country has accused Stockholm of failing to adequately crack down on supporters of separatist Kurdish militants that Turkey regards as terrorists. Sweden insists it fulfills NATO’s membership criteria and has taken steps agreed with Turkey, such as ending an arms embargo and tightening anti-terror laws.
If approved by both countries, Sweden’s membership would realign the security dynamic in Europe following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with Finland’s membership in the alliance ratified in April.
