After a long delay, Turkey is set to approve Sweden's NATO membership bid on Tuesday. Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan is set to vote on Sweden's application about 20 months after Stockholm asked to join NATO following Russia-Ukraine war.
After Turkey's approval, Hungary would be the only nation remaining to approve Sweden's membership.
Based on its actions, Hungary has said it believes NATO membership is "not a priority" for Sweden. It had pledged not to be the last ally to ratify Sweden's membership, but its parliament is in recess until around mid-February.
Last year when Sweden and Finland asked to join NATO, Turkey raised objection over the two countries' protection of groups that Turkey deems as terrorists.
Turkey had urged Stockholm to toughen its stance on local members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which the European Union and United States also deem a terrorist group. In response, Stockholm introduced a new anti-terrorism bill that makes being a member of a terrorist organisation illegal, reported Reuters.
Sweden, Finland, Canada and the Netherlands also took steps to relax Turkey arms-export policies as well. Erdogan, who sent Sweden's bid to parliament in October, has linked Sweden's ratification to U.S. approval of sales of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey.
Parliament's foreign affairs commission approved the Sweden’s bid last month, with Erdogan's ruling AK Party, nationalist allies MHP, and main opposition CHP backing it. While the Opposition nationalist and Islamist parties rejected the bid.
