Turkey to Resume NATO Accession Talks with Sweden and Finland on July 9

Turkey has decided to resume talks related to Sweden and Finland's accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which had been suspended due to anti-Turkey protests in Sweden.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to foreign media, Mevl?t ?avu?o?lu, Turkey's Foreign Minister, held a press conference in Ankara on the 27th (local time) and stated, "We plan to hold talks on Sweden and Finland's NATO accession in Brussels, Belgium, on the 9th of next month."

He also said, "The talks will discuss the implementation of the memorandum signed by the three countries," and reiterated the position that "Sweden's NATO accession consent is impossible unless the memorandum is implemented."

Sweden and Finland applied for NATO membership last year, but Turkey has not agreed to Sweden's accession due to issues regarding the handling of individuals related to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). NATO requires unanimous consent from member countries for new membership.

The PKK is considered a terrorist organization and the greatest security threat in Turkey. Turkey agreed to consent to the two countries' NATO accession on the condition of extradition of PKK-related individuals, but conflicts have arisen with Sweden during the implementation of the agreement.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.