The matter in summary: On Tuesday, Turkey’s national assembly will vote on whether Sweden can join NATO. If Sweden gets its yes from Turkey, Hungary is the last obstacle to Swedish NATO membership. Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban has invited Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson to a meeting to discuss this. Kristersson has not yet accepted the invitation. On Tuesday, the question of whether Sweden should be allowed to join NATO is up for debate in the Turkish National Assembly. They will vote on whether or not they want to approve Sweden’s NATO application. Several hours remain before the vote, reports SVT. In December, the foreign affairs committee in the national assembly gave the green light for Sweden to become a member of the defense alliance. It is expected that the National Assembly will also give its yes on Tuesday. Then only a formal stroke of the pen remains from President Erdogan before Turkey officially approves Sweden’s application. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) greets Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson during the NATO summit in Lithuania last summer. In the middle stands NATO’s Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg. Photo: Yves Herman / AP The Swedish government has so far not commented on today’s treatment. Having almost waited for two years, Sweden submitted its application to join NATO shortly after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. So did neighboring Finland, which was admitted as a NATO member in April last year. All the 31 member states of NATO must agree before a new member can be admitted. Sweden has so far lacked support from both Turkey and Hungary. Turkish authorities have been critical of Swedish NATO membership. Among other things, because they believed that Sweden harbored “PKK terrorists” and because there have been several Koran burnings in Sweden. Turkish demonstrators in Istanbul protest against Sweden becoming a member of NATO. The picture was taken on 23 January. Photo: Francisco Seco / AP It was only in July last year that Erdogan opened the door for Sweden to join the defense alliance. The issue of Swedish NATO membership has been controversial in Turkey. On Tuesday, several people took to the streets to protest against the application being approved. Missing the green light from Hungary If Turkey approves Sweden’s application, Hungary is the last obstacle to the country becoming a member of NATO. Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban. Photo: ATTILA KISBENEDEK / AFP On Tuesday, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced that he has invited Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson to a meeting in Hungary. – I am convinced that strong mutual trust must be the basis for all political and security policy agreements between Sweden and Hungary, he writes in a letter sent to Kristersson. So far, Kristersson has not commented on the invitation. Foreign Minister Tobias Billström tells SVT that the government must consider what the letter to Orban signals before deciding whether to send someone to Hungary. – The letter sets a good tone and we naturally have to reflect on this, he says.
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The Turkish National Assembly processes Sweden’s NATO application – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
