Dutch FM pleased that Turkey stopped blocking Sweden's NATO membership

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stopped blocking Sweden’s membership to NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary General of the alliance, said on Twitter after meeting with Erdogan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson. Outgoing Minister Wopke Hoekstra of Foreign Affairs called it a welcome development.

Turkey and Hungary were the only NATO members who had not yet agreed to Sweden’s membership in the alliance, according to NOS. Erdogan accused Sweden of harboring terrorists, referring to sympathizers of the Kurdish PKK, and demanded that the European Union first resume stalled talks on his country’s EU membership before Turkey agrees to Sweden’s accession.

But in the meeting with Stoltenberg and Kristersson, Erdogan agreed to forward Sweden’s accession protocol to the Turkish parliament and “ensure ratification,” Stoltenberg said on Twitter. “This is a historic step which makes all NATO Allies stronger and safer.”

Hoekstra is also pleased with the development. “Very, very welcome news for both NATO and Sweden. This is an important step forward on the road to ratification. It took a while, but it was worth the wait,” he said on Twitter.

According to Reuters, Stoltenberg hinted that Hungary was also prepared to drop its objections to Sweden’s NATO membership. That means the road is clear for Sweden to join the allied nations.