Sweden’s Foreign Minister Tobias Billström remains optimistic that Türkiye will ratify Sweden’s planned NATO membership when the Turkish Parliament reconvenes in October, as agreed with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at a summit in July.
"The Swedish government has not had any signals during the summer other than that the cards that were put down then are ones that are valid now in this question and that the statement given at Vilnius is still valid," the Swedish foreign minister told reporters after meeting visiting members of the U.S. Congress on Friday.
Sweden applied for NATO membership last year in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and most alliance members quickly ratified its bid.
But Türkiye has held out, citing security worries over terrorist groups like PKK, its Syrian branch YPG, and the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), which orchestrated a bloody but defeated coup in Türkiye seven years ago.
After months of negotiations, Erdoğan said after a NATO summit in Vilnius in July he would forward the ratification of Sweden's NATO bid to Parliament in October when it reconvenes after the summer break.
But there is no guarantee that Sweden will get the green light even then.
Billström said that Parliament was a sovereign institution but that the Turkish government had promised in Vilnius to ensure "the swift ratification" of Sweden's accession by Parliament.
"This, I think, speaks for itself," Billström said. "It means that the government of Türkiye is committed to the ratification."
Türkiye has said it wants more action against terrorists and their sympathizers living in Sweden, mainly members of FETÖ and the PKK, which is outlawed in Türkiye, the U.S. and the EU.
Last month, Türkiye’s Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç said they were awaiting Sweden to positively respond to the extradition requests for terrorists wanted by Türkiye, which has been one of Ankara’s key terms in greenlighting Stockholm’s application.
Earlier this summer, Stockholm passed legislative amendments tightening crackdowns on members of terrorist groups.
Türkiye filed 28 extradition requests to Sweden in terrorism and 22 cases were rejected, which included nine suspects from the PKK, eight from FETÖ and five from other terrorist groups.
Tensions with Ankara have also been heightened by demonstrations in Sweden where protesters have burned copies of the Quran, enraging many Muslims.
Türkiye was among the most vocal critics of the burnings. Though the Swedish government condemned the acts and announced measures to prevent desecration, they also insisted on adhering to the "freedom of expression" of the people involved in incidents.
