Sweden says Nato membership talks with Turkey are ‘going very well’
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Sweden has sought to tone down its criticism of Turkey for blocking its Nato membership, stressing that its negotiations with Ankara were “going very well” despite little sign of a potential breakthrough.
Sweden and neighbouring Finland took the historic decision to apply to join the US-led military alliance last May in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. But the membership process was held up after Turkey, which has Nato’s second-largest army, refused to approve their joint bid unless a series of demands were met by Stockholm.
Ulf Kristersson, Sweden’s prime minister, on Sunday said the country had done what it could to meet Turkey’s demands and would do no more. But on Wednesday he struck an emollient tone, telling reporters there had been a “misunderstanding”, and that he respected Ankara’s right to make its own decision on ratification.
“We have shown for Türkiye that we are doing exactly what we promised to do,” he said, using the pronunciation preferred by Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. “That is basically going very well. I think Türkiye is confirming that in our meetings.”
“We have the fullest respect for the fact that Türkiye and every other of the 30 Nato countries make their own domestic decisions on whether to ratify or not,” Kristersson said. “It has been a very rapid process. We feel very strong support from countries.”
Turkey, Sweden and Finland agreed in a June memorandum to a list of steps Stockholm would take to secure Ankara’s support, including distancing itself from a Kurdish militia, lifting an embargo on weapons exports to Turkey and stressing it would work to combat terrorism.
But Ankara has since added a number of additional measures, including demands that Sweden extradite some Turkish citizens, something the Swedish government says is a legal decision it has no influence over.
“I did say that Türkiye sometimes names people that they would like to have extradited from Sweden. It is well known that Swedish legislation on that is . . . very clear — that courts are making those decisions,” Kristersson added. “There is no room for changing that.”
In response to Sweden and Finland’s failure to secure full Nato membership, the military alliance has stressed the benefits they already enjoy, such as bilateral security guarantees from countries such as the US, in lieu of Nato’s formal Article 5 collective security pact.
“We have to understand that Finland and Sweden, they are in a very different place now compared to where they were before,” Nato secretary- general Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday. “Since they applied, several Nato allies, including the United States, have agreed bilateral security arrangements, security assurances for Finland and Sweden.
“It’s inconceivable that Finland and Sweden will face any military threats without Nato reacting to that,” he added. “I of course see the importance of finalising the accession process . . . But I’m also saying that I’m confident that will happen and that we have already moved a very long way in a short time with Finland and Sweden.”
Turkey and EU member state Hungary are the only two Nato members yet to ratify Sweden and Finland’s membership, which requires unanimous support of the alliance’s 30 states.
The Turkish foreign ministry declined to comment on the talks with Sweden or the prime minister’s remarks.
Additional reporting by Ayla Jean Yackley in Istanbul
