Sweden to seek constructive progress with Turkey over NATO bid
Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde said on Friday Sweden aims to make constructive progress in talks with Turkey over the Nordic country's application to join NATO. "Our application has received broad support among NATO members," she said in a foreign policy declaration after Sweden.
- World
- Reuters
- Published Date: 11:18 | 10 June 2022
- Modified Date: 11:45 | 10 June 2022
Sweden will look to make constructive progress in talks with Turkey on Ankara's objections over the Nordic country's application to join the NATO defensive alliance, Foreign Minister Ann Linde said on Friday.
Finland and Sweden applied to join NATO last month in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine but face opposition from Turkey, which accuses them of supporting and harbouring the PKK militants and other groups it deems terrorists.
"Our application has received broad support among NATO members," she said in a foreign policy declaration in the Swedish parliament. "Our ambition is to, in a constructive spirit, make progress on the questions that Turkey has raised."
Linde added that there should be no doubts that Sweden stood together with its allies against terrorism.
Ankara has also hit out at Swedish authorities for halting arms exports to Turkey in 2019 as the country launched a military operation in northern Syria.
While not referring directly to Turkey, Linde said Swedish membership in NATO could "change the conditions for arms exports within our national regulatory framework".
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