Erdogan speaks at a press conference on the sidelines of a previous NATO summit in Spain (Reuters - Archive)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday signed the presidential decree on Sweden's accession to NATO and approved the relevant protocol.
The Turkish Official Gazette published the protocol approved by Erdogan, making it the last technical step in the process of Turkey ratifying Sweden’s accession to NATO.
Hungary's approval still needs to be obtained, but it said on Tuesday that it believed NATO membership was "not a priority" for Sweden based on its actions.
On Tuesday, the Turkish Parliament approved a draft law approving the protocol for Sweden’s accession to the alliance, about 20 months after Stockholm submitted its request to join following the Russian attack on Ukraine.
After the representatives approved it, the draft law was referred to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for signature, so that it becomes effective within days.
It is noteworthy that Turkey set conditions for agreeing to Sweden’s joining the Atlantic system, including confronting groups classified as terrorists such as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.
Source: Agencies