Turkish Parliament approves Sweden's NATO bid

ANKARA

Türkiye's parliamentary vote late on Jan. 23 endorsing Sweden's NATO membership has drawn positive reactions from military alliance partners, solidifying the Nordic nation's path to becoming the 32nd member.

Lawmakers' 287-55 vote in favor came after the backing of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who is expected to sign Sweden's ratification document and conclude Ankara's role in the protracted saga in the coming days.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson swiftly reacted to the news, stating, "Today we are one step closer to becoming a full member of NATO. Positive that the Grand General Assembly of Türkiye has voted in favor of Sweden's NATO accession."

Sweden's Foreign Minister Tobias Billström echoed the sentiment, calling the vote "of course good" and expressing the government's anticipation for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to sign the ratification.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg also welcomed the vote and urged Hungary to follow suit, emphasizing the importance of Budapest completing its national ratification "as soon as possible."

The United States, through National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, applauded the Turkish parliament's decision, emphasizing that Sweden's inclusion would make the alliance "safer and stronger."

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz took to social media to acknowledge the significance of the decision, writing, "Today's decision by the Turkish Parliament to ratify Sweden's accession to NATO is important and right. It strengthens our alliance. We expect that Sweden will now be able to formally join the Atlantic Alliance very soon."

Türkiye's green light leaves Budapest as the last holdout in an accession process that Sweden and Finland began in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago.

The German Foreign Ministry urged Hungary to expedite the remaining steps, emphasizing, "It is now time for Hungary to conclude the remaining steps so that we can welcome our Swedish friends into the Alliance."

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, meanwhile, invited his Swedish counterpart to Budapest to discuss the bid, although hints emerged of strains between Stockholm and Budapest.

"I invite you to visit Hungary at your earliest convenience to exchange views on all issues of common interest," Orban wrote in the letter seen by AFP.

Orban then added in a social media statement that Kristersson should come to Hungary "to negotiate" Sweden's accession.

Swedish officials immediately countered that there was nothing to negotiate because – unlike Türkiye – Hungary never presented conditions when Sweden was invited at the 2022 NATO summit in Madrid.

Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said he saw "no reason" to negotiate with Hungary about Stockholm's NATO candidacy "at this point."

Türkiye and Hungary were the only NATO members to oppose the northern neighbors’ applications. The former eventually ratified Finland's bid but continued to accuse Sweden of failing to crack down on terrorist organization members.

In response, Sweden tightened its anti-terrorism legislation, and Erdoğan lifted his objections to Sweden's application at a NATO summit in July.

Ankara then made Türkiye's ratification conditional on the U.S. Congress "simultaneously" approving its request for 40 F-16 jets and spare parts. With the U.S. also conditioning the sale on Sweden's NATO admission, the approval has met resistance from Congress.

Türkiye's pursuit of new fighter jets followed its expulsion from the F-35 program due to the deployment of Russian S-400 air defense systems.