Turkey has been blocking Sweden’s entry into the Atlantic Alliance for several months. It highlights Stockholm’s lack of cooperation in the fight against the PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party), considered terrorist by the European Union. But another issue is in the balance: that of the delivery to Ankara of dozens of F-16 combat planes by the United States, blocked by the American Congress.
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With our correspondent in Ankara, Céline Pierre-Magnani
“ Parliament to debate Sweden’s NATO candidacy “, headlines this Tuesday, December 26, the online information site Daily Sabah, close to the government. An announcement that has already been made several times in recent months, and the twists and turns of the Turkish parliamentary system now have no secrets from anyone.
Stockholm has been waiting for 19 months for Turkey and Hungary to ratify its membership of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization). Western capitals are getting annoyed and Jens Stoltenberg, the Secretary General of the Atlantic Alliance, is struggling to renew his formulas to convince his ally.
A joker for Turkey
Last July, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had nevertheless lifted his veto. But discussions broke down within the Foreign Affairs Committee in November. On Monday, December 25, the President of the Commission specified, in a television interview, that the measures taken against the PKK by Sweden were still “ few “.
Ankara has opposed its Western partners on numerous issues in recent months, such as the war in Gaza, where the president unfailingly supports the Hamas organization. Ratification of membership is a wild card for Turkey. A joker that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is tempted to keep in his game.
Read alsoTurkey: Erdogan conditions Sweden’s membership in NATO on the acquisition of American F-16s