Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has submitted a protocol for Sweden’s admission into NATO to Turkey’s parliament for ratification, his office said Monday, bringing the Nordic country a step closer to membership in the military alliance, writes APNEWS.
Erdogan had been delaying ratification of Sweden’s membership, accusing Stockholm of being too soft on Kurdish militants and other groups his country considers to be security threats. Turkey also was angered by a series of Quran-burning protests in Sweden.
All 31 NATO allies must endorse Sweden’s membership. Turkey and Hungary are the only two allies that have yet to ratify it.
A brief statement from the presidential communications directorate said Erdogan had signed the protocol on Sweden’s NATO accession, which was then submitted to the Turkish Grand National Assembly. It was not known when Sweden’s membership would come to the floor.
