{"id":7474,"date":"2023-06-01T14:08:51","date_gmt":"2023-06-01T13:08:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=7474"},"modified":"2025-10-18T08:35:50","modified_gmt":"2025-10-18T07:35:50","slug":"nato-urges-turkey-to-approve-swedens-membership-in-nato","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/diplomatic-world\/nato-urges-turkey-to-approve-swedens-membership-in-nato\/2023\/06\/01\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"NATO urges Turkey to approve Sweden\u2019s membership in NATO"},"content":{"rendered":"

OSLO,<\/span> Norway<\/span> (AP)<\/span> –<\/span> NATO<\/span> member<\/span> nation<\/span> Turkey<\/span> said<\/span>\u00a0as<\/span> military<\/span> agencies<\/span> try<\/span> to<\/span> discuss<\/span> the<\/span> issue<\/span> pending<\/span> a<\/span> meeting<\/span> with<\/span> U.S.<\/span> President<\/span> Joe<\/span> Biden<\/span> and<\/span> others<\/span> due<\/span> next<\/span> month.<\/span> increased<\/span> pressure<\/span> to<\/span> withdraw<\/span> their<\/span> opposition<\/span> to<\/span> Sweden’s<\/span> accession.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> military<\/span> group<\/span> is<\/span> also<\/span> considering<\/span> strengthening<\/span> Ukraine’s<\/span> non-member<\/span> status<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> alliance<\/span> and<\/span> preparing<\/span> a<\/span> framework<\/span> of<\/span> security<\/span> commitments<\/span> it<\/span> can<\/span> offer<\/span> after<\/span> the<\/span> end<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> war<\/span> with<\/span> Russia.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>NATO<\/span> head<\/span> Jens<\/span> Stoltenberg<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> alliance<\/span> hopes<\/span> to<\/span> include<\/span> Sweden<\/span> by<\/span> the<\/span> time<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> alliance<\/span> summit<\/span> in<\/span> Lithuania<\/span> next<\/span> month.<\/span> He<\/span> also<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> allies<\/span> hope<\/span> to<\/span> see<\/span> progress<\/span> on<\/span> long-term<\/span> financing<\/span> and<\/span> Ukraine’s<\/span> security<\/span> plans<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> same<\/span> event.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>He<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> allies<\/span> continue<\/span> to<\/span> unite<\/span> on<\/span> Ukraine’s<\/span> entry<\/span> into<\/span> NATO,<\/span> but<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> meantime<\/span> the<\/span> alliance<\/span> should<\/span> offer<\/span> security<\/span> commitments<\/span> and<\/span> important<\/span> new<\/span> assets.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Our<\/span> focus<\/span> today<\/span> was<\/span> on<\/span> how<\/span> to<\/span> bring<\/span> Ukraine<\/span> closer<\/span> to<\/span> NATO<\/span> –<\/span> closer<\/span> to<\/span> NATO,<\/span> where<\/span> Ukraine<\/span> belongs,”<\/span> he<\/span> said.<\/span><\/p>\n

“No<\/span> one<\/span> knows<\/span> when<\/span> the<\/span> war<\/span> will<\/span> end,<\/span> but<\/span> then<\/span> we<\/span> must<\/span> ensure<\/span> that<\/span> credible<\/span> arrangements<\/span> are<\/span> in<\/span> place<\/span> to<\/span> secure<\/span> Ukraine’s<\/span> future<\/span> and<\/span> break<\/span> the<\/span> spiral<\/span> of<\/span> Russian<\/span> aggression,”<\/span> Steitenberg<\/span> said.<\/span>\u00a0
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Fearing<\/span> being<\/span> targeted<\/span> after<\/span> Russia’s<\/span> invasion<\/span> of<\/span> Ukraine<\/span> last<\/span> year,<\/span> Sweden<\/span> and<\/span> Finland<\/span> abandoned<\/span> their<\/span> traditional<\/span> positions<\/span> of<\/span> military<\/span> non-alignment<\/span> and<\/span> sought<\/span> protection<\/span> under<\/span> the<\/span> NATO<\/span> security<\/span> umbrella.<\/span> Finland<\/span> became<\/span> the<\/span> 31st<\/span> NATO<\/span> member<\/span> in<\/span> April.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>NATO<\/span> requires<\/span> member<\/span> states<\/span> to<\/span> agree<\/span> unanimously.<\/span> The<\/span> Turkish<\/span> government<\/span> has<\/span> accused<\/span> Sweden<\/span> of<\/span> being<\/span> too<\/span> lenient<\/span> on<\/span> terrorist<\/span> organizations<\/span> and<\/span> security<\/span> threats,<\/span> including<\/span> Kurdish<\/span> extremist<\/span> groups<\/span> and<\/span> individuals<\/span> implicated<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> 2016<\/span> coup<\/span> attempt.<\/span> Hungary<\/span> has<\/span> also<\/span> delayed<\/span> approval,<\/span> but<\/span> has<\/span> not<\/span> made<\/span> public<\/span> the<\/span> reason.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Stoltenberg<\/span> said<\/span> he<\/span> will<\/span> visit<\/span> Ankara<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> near<\/span> future<\/span> to<\/span> further<\/span> discuss<\/span> how<\/span> to<\/span> ensure<\/span> early<\/span> accession<\/span> of<\/span> Sweden.<\/span> He<\/span> said<\/span> his<\/span> staff<\/span> and<\/span> those<\/span> of<\/span> Turkish<\/span> President<\/span> Recep<\/span> Tayyip<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> were<\/span> coordinating<\/span> the<\/span> dates<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> visit.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>For<\/span> months<\/span> Sweden,<\/span> Finland<\/span> and<\/span> Turkey<\/span> have<\/span> been<\/span> holding<\/span> talks<\/span> to<\/span> try<\/span> to<\/span> address<\/span> Ankara’s<\/span> concerns.<\/span><\/p>\n

Billstr\u00f6m<\/span> said<\/span> that<\/span> he<\/span> expects<\/span> things<\/span> to<\/span> be<\/span> made<\/span> clear<\/span> at<\/span> a<\/span> new<\/span> meeting<\/span> of<\/span> this<\/span> \u201cpermanent<\/span> joint<\/span> mechanism\u201d<\/span> in<\/span> coming<\/span> weeks. <\/span>Sweden<\/span> had<\/span> tightened<\/span> its<\/span> antiterrorism<\/span> laws.<\/span> It<\/span> is<\/span> now<\/span> it<\/span> illegal<\/span> to<\/span> finance,<\/span> recruit<\/span> for<\/span> or<\/span> publicly<\/span> encourage<\/span> \u201ca<\/span> terrorist<\/span> organization,\u201d<\/span> or<\/span> to<\/span> travel<\/span> abroad<\/span> with<\/span> the<\/span> intention<\/span> of<\/span> joining<\/span> such<\/span> groups.<\/span> It<\/span> may<\/span> be<\/span> the<\/span> right<\/span> time<\/span> to<\/span> move.<\/span> Members<\/span> of<\/span> Sweden<\/span> were<\/span> campaigning<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> Turkish<\/span> elections<\/span> won<\/span> by<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> on<\/span> Sunday.<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> is<\/span> also<\/span> looking<\/span> for<\/span> modernized<\/span> US<\/span> fighter<\/span> jets,<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> US<\/span> government<\/span> suggested<\/span> they<\/span> could<\/span> be<\/span> delivered<\/span> this<\/span> week.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>US<\/span> Secretary<\/span> of<\/span> State<\/span> Anthony<\/span> Brinken<\/span> emphasized<\/span> on<\/span> Tuesday<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> Swedish<\/span> membership<\/span> issue<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> fighter<\/span> jet<\/span> issue<\/span> are<\/span> different. <\/span>However,<\/span> he<\/span> stressed<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> completion<\/span> of<\/span> both<\/span> measures<\/span> would<\/span> significantly<\/span> strengthen<\/span> European<\/span> security.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“In<\/span> our<\/span> opinion,<\/span> both<\/span> are<\/span> extremely<\/span> important<\/span> for<\/span> European<\/span> security,”<\/span> Brinken<\/span> told<\/span> reporters.<\/span> \u201cWe<\/span> believe<\/span> both<\/span> sides<\/span> should<\/span> move<\/span> forward<\/span> as<\/span> soon<\/span> as<\/span> possible.<\/span> That<\/span> means<\/span> Sweden\u2019s<\/span> accession<\/span> and<\/span> further<\/span> development<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> broader<\/span> F-16<\/span> package.\u201d<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

OSLO, Norway (AP) – NATO member nation Turkey said\u00a0as military agencies try to discuss the issue pending a meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden and others due next month. increased pressure to withdraw their opposition to Sweden’s accession. The military group is also considering strengthening Ukraine’s non-member status in the alliance and preparing a framework […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7475,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[24,26,2480,2481,9925],"tags":[5743,471,5744,3201,4345,5731,5732,5733,5734,5735,5736,5737,5738,5739,5740,5741,5742],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/natoturky.webp","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7474"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7474"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7474\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7494,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7474\/revisions\/7494"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7475"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7474"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7474"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7474"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}