Global Courant
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BRUSSELS (AP) — Senior officials from Sweden and Turkey will meet at NATO headquarters Thursday to examine Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s objections to the Nordic country’s entry into the military alliance and to see what else can be done to break the deadlock. .
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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will chair the meeting, which will involve the countries’ foreign ministers, intelligence chiefs and national security advisers. Top officials from Finland, who joined NATO in April after raising Turkish concerns themselves, will also participate.
Fearing for their safety, Sweden and neighboring Finland ended their longstanding policy of military non-alignment after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and both applied for NATO membership.
President Joe Biden welcomed the Swedish prime minister to the White House on Wednesday in a show of solidarity as the United States stepped up pressure for the Nordic nation to join NATO ahead of the alliance’s two-day summit that begins next Tuesday.
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Only Turkey and Hungary postpone Sweden’s membership. The other 29 allies, Stoltenberg and Sweden have all said the Nordic country has done enough to meet Turkey’s demands. Among other things, Sweden has amended its anti-terror laws and lifted an arms embargo against Turkey.
But Turkey accuses Sweden of being lenient on groups Ankara says pose a security threat, including militant Kurdish groups and people involved in a 2016 coup attempt. NATO needs the unanimous approval of all 31 members to expand .
Hungary is also blocking approval of Sweden’s candidacy, but has never publicly expressed its concerns. NATO officials expect Hungary to follow suit once Turkey lifts its objections.
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At a European Union summit last week, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said Hungary had given assurances it would not delay business. “Twice I spoke with Prime Minister (Viktor) Orban,” Kristersson told reporters. “Both times he has confirmed that Hungary will not delay.”
Turkey is another matter. A Quran-burning protest, in which the media far outnumbered the participants, outside a mosque in Stockholm, has fueled tensions. Erdogan last week criticized Sweden for allowing it. Police allowed the protest citing freedom of expression after a court overturned a ban on similar burning of the Islamic holy book.
It is unclear what exactly Turkey is objecting to, and Thursday’s meeting is intended to address that. Erdogan railed against Sweden as he campaigned for elections in May, and NATO officials had expected him to concede after being re-elected.
Erdogan is also seeking upgraded F-16 fighter jets from the US, but Biden has suggested Sweden’s membership must be approved first.
