Sweden’s new government, now on the right, spoke out this Sunday (8) about the process of joining NATO, started in the middle of last year in response to Russia’s actions in the Ukraine War, breaking decades of neutrality.
Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said he was confident, but complained about demands put forward by Turkey, saying he could not meet all of them. The country led by Recep Tayyp Erdogan is part of the western military alliance and operates in a bite and blow mode in relation to the entry of Sweden and Finland: sometimes it expresses reservations and presents demands, sometimes it indicates the withdrawal of vetoes.
“Turkey confirms that we have done what we said we were going to do, but at the same time it is saying that it wants things that we cannot or do not want to give,” Kristersson told an event organized by a defense think tank. In the audience in Sälen were NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg of Norway and Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto.
“We are sure that Turkey will make a decision [positiva]but we don’t know when.” The premier added that the process depends on Ankara’s domestic policy and his country’s ability to show seriousness in the process.
The politician’s statements, however, may revive the Turkish version that leans towards the veto, which in any case had recently regained traction.
Last month, Chancellor Mevlüt Çavusoglu said he noted positive steps from Stockholm’s side, but added that the country expected “further important steps”. The speeches followed a decision by the Swedish Supreme Court that barred the extradition of journalist Bülent Kenes, displeasing the Erdogan regime, which accuses the professional of links with the opposition group of cleric Fethullah Güllen.
Entry into the US-led military alliance requires the express consent of all members, and so far only the Parliaments of Turkey and Hungary have not ratified the requests from Helsinki and Stockholm. Washington and other allies are pressuring Erdogan to lift the voiced objections.
Ankara had been expressing resistance to the candidacy of Sweden and Finland from the beginning, claiming that both nations supported groups opposed to the government, considered terrorists. In June, in the sewing of a tripartite agreement, the country even said that it had obtained “what it wanted”, citing “important achievements in the fight against terrorist organizations”, without offering details.
Erdogan operates a certain duality in the Ukraine War, seeking diplomatic dealings with both Moscow and Kiev. With Washington, things are more complex; since he found himself strange with the administration of Donald Trump, the Turk approached Vladimir Putin and, for having bought Russian anti-aircraft systems, ended up excluded from the multinational production program of the American F-35 fighter.
Güllen, accused by Erdogan of plotting the failed coup against him in 2016, now lives in the US, which refuses extradition requests.
The NATO entry process may take years to complete, but there is already a high degree of interoperability between Nordic Sweden and Finland (with which Russia shares 1,300 km of borders) and the military club.
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