Turkey Lifts Hurdle to Sweden's NATO Membership

UPDATE Jan 23, 2024 3:03 PM CST

Turkish legislators on Tuesday endorsed Sweden's membership in NATO, lifting a major hurdle on the previously nonaligned country's entry into the military alliance. The legislators ratified Sweden's accession protocol by 287 votes to 55, with four abstentions. The ratification will come into effect after its publication in the Official Gazette, which is expected to be swift, the AP reports. Hungary will then become the only NATO ally not to have ratified Sweden's accession. "Today we are one step closer to becoming a full member of NATO," Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson wrote on X. NATO-member Turkey had been delaying Sweden's membership for more than a year, accusing the country of being too lenient toward groups that Ankara regards as security threats.

Dec 26, 2023 1:10 PM CST

The Turkish parliament's foreign affairs committee gave its consent to Sweden's bid to join NATO on Tuesday, drawing the previously nonaligned Nordic country closer to membership in the Western military alliance, per the AP. Sweden's accession protocol will now need to be approved in the Turkish parliament's general assembly for the last stage of the legislative process in Turkey. No date has been set. Turkey, a NATO member, has delayed ratification of Sweden's membership for more than a year, accusing the country of being too lenient toward groups that Ankara regards as threats to its security, including Kurdish militants and members of a network that Ankara blames for a failed coup in 2016.

Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström welcomed the committee's decision on a message posted on X. "The next step is for parliament to vote on the matter," he wrote. "We look forward to becoming a member of NATO." NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the development, saying that he counts on Turkey and Hungary "to now complete their ratifications as soon as possible. Sweden's membership will make NATO stronger." NATO requires the unanimous approval of all existing members to expand, and Turkey and Hungary are the only countries that have been holding out. Hungary, however, has previously suggested it would follow Turkey's lead.

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Earlier this month, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan openly linked ratification of Sweden's NATO membership to the US Congress' approval of a Turkish request to purchase 40 new F-16 fighter jets. The White House has backed the Turkish F-16 request, but there is strong opposition in Congress to military sales to Turkey. Erdogan also called on Canada and other NATO allies to lift arms embargoes imposed on Turkey. Sweden and Finland abandoned their traditional positions of military nonalignment to seek protection under NATO's security umbrella, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Finland joined the alliance in April, becoming NATO's 31st member. (More NATO stories.)