Turkish Parliament Approves Sweden's NATO Membership

The grand national assembly of Turkey, on the evening of January 23, approved the ratification of the protocol for Sweden's accession to the North Atlantic Alliance after lengthy debates. In favour of Sweden's entry into NATO, 287 Turkish deputies voted, while 55 parliamentarians opposed the decision, as reported by Bloomberg.

Following parliamentary approval, the document was sent back to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for final signing before being transferred to the U.S. State Department in Washington. President Erdogan has already endorsed Sweden's membership in the alliance, and it is anticipated that he will sign the document, although the exact timing remains undisclosed.

Sweden had been awaiting approval of its NATO membership request for over a year and a half. President Erdogan submitted the ratification protocol to the parliament in October 2023, but the process faced delays due to Ankara's demands for the acquisition of American F-16 fighter jets.

The Turkish parliament's decision brings Sweden one step closer to realizing its goal of becoming the 32nd member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, one year and eight months after submitting the relevant application.

"I welcome the vote of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in favour of ratifying Sweden's NATO membership. I also count on Hungary to complete its national ratification as soon as possible," stated Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary-General.

It is worth noting that Hungary has also not yet approved Sweden's NATO membership. The Hungarian government has repeatedly stated that it will not be the "last" country to ratify Sweden's application. Recently, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban invited his Swedish counterpart to Budapest to discuss the matter. However, Sweden's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tobias Billström, remarked that there are currently no justified reasons for such negotiations.

In turn, Jake Sullivan, the U.S. National Security Advisor, emphasized in his statement that Sweden's membership is a priority for President Joe Biden. He noted that "NATO membership aligns with the national security interests of the United States and will make the alliance safer and stronger."

As a reminder, The Gaze previously reported that NATO plans to spend $1.2 billion on purchasing over 200,000 155mm ammunition to support Ukraine.