"It is a good day for Sweden," said Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson as Turkey, after months of blocking, finally agreed to support the nation's bid to join the NATO military alliance. The breakthrough came after protracted talks between Turkish and Swedish leaders in Lithuania, which will host the annual NATO Summit this week.
Now, Sweden's bid has to be approved by the Turkish parliament, and Erdogan has agreed to push for its ratification. Hungary is also yet to greenlight Sweden's bid.
In a bid to join NATO, nations need unanimous approval from the military alliance's 31 member states.
Why Sweden Wants NATO Membership?
Concerned over Russia's invasion of Ukraine a year ago, Finland, on May 12, 2022, and Sweden, on May 16, 2022, applied to join NATO, dropping their long-held stance of non-alignment. Finland shares a 1,300-km border with Russia. Sweden's Gotland Island is just 300 km from Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
Moreover, Sweden has also felt endangered in recent years, with several reported airspace violations by Russian military aircraft, BBC reported.
Thus, by joining NATO, both the countries will be guaranteed military support by members of the military alliance in case of an attack by any other country or external force. Russia has strongly opposed the joining of both the countries.
How Will NATO Benefit?
NATO will get a shot in the arm as Sweden has a strong air force and a submarine fleet tailored to Baltic Sea conditions. It will help NATO stabilise the security of the area around the Baltic Sea.
This will thereby help NATO defend members Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania as these countries are often seen as potential targets for Russian aggression.
Moreover, Finland and Sweden joining NATO will double the length of the alliance's border with Russia. It will also enable the military alliance to improve its surveillance of Russia's western flank.
Why Turkey Was Against Sweden Joining NATO?
There are a multitude of reasons behind Turkey's long-delayed approval of Sweden's application to join NATO -- ranging from protests against Islam and in support of Kurdish rights.
Turkey's main accusation was Sweden hosting Kurdish militants. The concern was addressed with Sweden amending its constitution and expanding its counter-terrorism operation against the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party).
The Kurdistan Workers' Party is considered a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the EU and the United States. Turkey had blamed the PKK and another group for a 2016 coup attempt.
Sweden also resumed arms exports to Turkey. Sweden had imposed curbs on the sale of arms to Turkey after Ankara's military campaign in Syria in 2019.
Recently, Turkey was singed by the burning of the Muslim holy book, Quran, outside a Stockholm mosque.
The tensions between the two countries intensified in January after an effigy of Turkish President Erdogan was hung upside down from a lamppost in Stockholm during a pro-Kurdish demonstration.
While Turkey called these hate crimes, Sweden said they were covered by freedom of speech laws.
Earlier this year, Turkey had suspended talks with Sweden on its NATO application after Rasmus Paludan, a Swedish-Danish activist, burned a copy of the Quran outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm.
How World Leaders Reacted To The Development?
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson called it a "good day for Sweden". "We take a very big step towards the formal ratification of Sweden's membership in NATO. It has been a good day for Sweden," he said.
US President Joe Biden said he welcomed the commitment by Turkish President Erdogan, BBC reported.
"I stand ready to work with President Erdogan and Turkey on enhancing defence and deterrence in the Euro-Atlantic area. I look forward to welcoming Prime Minister Kristersson and Sweden as our 32nd Nato ally," a White House statement said.
German Foreign Minister Annalen Baerbock tweeted, "At 32, we're all safer together." British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Sweden joining would "make us all safer".