NATO leader Jens Stoltenberg assured this Monday that the organization will negotiate Sweden’s entry into the Atlantic Alliance before next month’s summit in Vilnius, and with Turkey’s agreement.
Stoltenberg said he had spoken with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and that he “agreed to convene a high-level meeting in Brussels ahead of the summit,” which will take place in Vilnius on July 12-12.
“This meeting will bring together foreign ministers, intelligence chiefs and national security advisers. The aim is to make progress towards Sweden’s accession to NATO,” said NATO’s secretary general.
Sweden was invited to join the Atlantic Alliance in June 2022, but the process must be ratified by all 31 member states, including Turkey and Hungary, which have set conditions for such membership.
Western countries – especially the United States – have asked Ankara not to impede Sweden’s accession because the Swedish government has abided by the terms of an agreement reached last year with the Turkish authorities regarding attitudes to the Kurdish opposition. movements, including the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which Turkey classifies as a terrorist group.
Source: DN
