Turkey monitors Sweden’s counterterrorism steps for NATO bid: Erdogan

Ankara: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that his country would monitor Sweden’s counterterrorism steps before ratifying its NATO bid at the parliament.

“We will follow the (implementation of) promises and guarantees given by the Swedish side… and take action according to the steps Sweden takes,” Erdogan told reporters on his flight back to Turkey on Friday, according to the state-run TRT broadcaster.

“It will be in Sweden’s favour if the Nordic country takes concrete steps in the fight against terrorist organisations and the extradition of terrorists,” the President noted.

The NATO accession process requires the approval of all member states. Sweden and Finland applied to join the military alliance last year but faced objections from Turkey, which argued that the two countries harbour members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party and the Gulen movement.

Ankara eventually lifted its objection to Finland’s NATO bid in March this year, Xinhua news agency reported.

Turkey agreed to advance Sweden’s accession to NATO on July 10, just ahead of a summit of the military alliance. 

The Turkish Parliament will vote on the Nordic country’s NATO membership in October.

(Except for the headline, the story has not been edited by Siasat staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)