Turkish parliament committee gives approval to Sweden’s NATO bid

• The approval comes after Russia invaded Ukraine.
• Erdogan withdrew his objections to Sweden’s NATO membership in July.
• The Biden administration has pledged to proceed with the $20-billion F-16 sale.

After months of delays, a key committee in the Turkish parliament has given its approval to Sweden’s bid to join NATO. This marks a significant step forward in Sweden’s accession process, which had faced obstacles, particularly from Turkey and Hungary. The approval comes in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Sweden’s NATO bid had encountered opposition. President Erdogan linked it to Ankara’s request for F-16 fighter jets from the United States. Both Sweden and Finland abandoned their longstanding military non-alignment to seek NATO membership in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine.

While NATO members, except Turkey and Hungary, swiftly approved their bids, these two nations initially resisted. Eventually, Hungary and Finland relented, and Finland became NATO’s 31st member in April. Turkey and Hungary are the remaining NATO members yet to ratify Sweden’s bid, which has been pending for 19 months since the application.

On Tuesday, the Turkish parliament’s foreign affairs committee gave its approval, signaling progress in Sweden’s NATO membership process.

“The protocol (on Sweden’s NATO accession) passed the committee,” opposition CHP party lawmaker Utku Cakirozer, a member of the foreign affairs committee, told the source after the vote.

In a significant development, Erdogan withdrew his objections to Sweden’s NATO membership in July. This shift in stance came after Stockholm took action against Kurdish groups that Ankara designated as terrorists.

NATO allies have piled pressure on Turkiye, with France saying the credibility of the alliance was “at stake.”

In December, Erdogan connected Sweden’s NATO membership to a condition: he wanted the US Congress to approve the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey at the same time. Additionally, he called for NATO allies, including Canada, to lift arms embargoes that had been imposed on Ankara.

“Sweden’s NATO membership and F-16 sales to Turkiye will be handled in coordination to some extent… because unfortunately, neither country trusts the other,” Ozgur Unluhisarcikli, the Ankara office director of the US German Marshall Fund think tank, told the media.

Turkey’s air force, which is getting older, has faced challenges since being removed from the US-led F-35 joint strike fighter program in 2019. This action was taken as a response to Erdogan’s choice to purchase an advanced Russian missile defense system.

While the Biden administration has consistently pledged to proceed with the $20-billion F-16 sale. It has been hindered by lawmakers who express concerns about Turkey’s alleged human rights violations and ongoing tensions with Greece.

“There is no strong consensus in the parliament on Sweden’s NATO membership. Nor in the US Congress on the sale of F-16s to Turkiye,” Unluhisarcikli said.

Erdogan’s anti-Israel rhetoric after the start of its war with Hamas had raised concerns in Washington.

“Although the issues are not related, Turkiye’s statements supporting Hamas further complicated the F-16 process,” Unluhisarcikli said, adding that the killing of Turkish soldiers by Kurdish militants last weekend could also factor into Sweden’s NATO membership.

“But if Biden and Erdogan show the necessary will, we can expect the process to be concluded soon,” he added.

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