ISTANBUL: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan officially presented Sweden’s application for NATO membership to the Turkish parliament on Monday, marking a significant step toward resolving a 17-month diplomatic impasse.
Sweden’s request for NATO membership, which was submitted after Sweden abandoned its longstanding policy of non-alignment last year in response to Russia’s war on Ukraine, has yet to be ratified by Turkey and Hungary, the only NATO members that have not done so.
NATO Partners Laud Erdogan’s Advances with Sweden’s Membership
Under mounting pressure from its NATO allies, Erdogan, during a NATO summit in Vilnius in July, committed to presenting Sweden’s membership for ratification in the Turkish parliament.
“The NATO membership protocol for Sweden was signed on October 23, 2023, by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and has been submitted to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey,” the presidential office announced on X, previously known as Twitter.
The Protocol on Sweden's Accession to NATO was signed by President @RTErdogan on October 23, 2023 and referred to the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye.
— Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye (@trpresidency) October 23, 2023
Reacting to the development, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson welcomed the news, calling it “encouraging.”
“Now it is up to the parliament to address the matter,” Kristersson stated in a post on X.
He said that they are eagerly waiting to get NATO membership.
