Turkey agrees to Sweden Nato membership after previously blocking bid

Turkey has agreed to support Sweden's bid to join Nato after previously blocking the country from joining.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said during a briefing that he would forward Sweden's bid to join Nato to the Turkish parliament for ratification.

It comes after the president previously appeared to suggest that Turkey would only back Sweden joining if it was re-considered for EU membership.

Nato’s directory general Jens Stoltenberg said: “President Erdogan has agreed to forward the accession protocol for Sweden to the Grand National Assembly [Turkey’s parliament] as soon as possible and work closely with the assembly to ensure ratification.”

Mr Stolenberg said this is a “historic step” but that a clear date could not be given for when Sweden officially joins.

Turkey previously resisted Sweden joining the alliance after accusing Swedish authorities of being complicit in Islamophobic demonstrations.

It also claims that Sweden allowed members of recognised Kurdish terror groups to operate, such as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party. Although Sweden changed its terrorism laws earlier this year to make it a crime to be part of these groups.

As a member of Nato, Turkey has a veto on allowing other nations to join the alliance. But the Turkish president faced pressure from European and American allies to allow Sweden to join.

Joe Biden spoke with Mr Erdogan while flying aboard Air Force One on Sunday, CNN reported.

The US president conveyed his desire to welcome Sweden into Nato as soon as possible, according to a readout from the White House.

In a statement, the White House said: “I welcome the statement issued by Turkey, Sweden and the Nato secretary general this evening, including the commitment by President Erdoğan to transmit the Accession Protocol for Sweden to Turkey’s Grand National Assembly for swift ratification.

“I stand ready to work with President Erdoğan and Turkey on enhancing defence and deterrence in the Euro-Atlantic area.

“I look forward to welcoming Prime Minister Kristersson and Sweden as our 32nd Nato Ally. And I thank secretary general Stoltenberg for his steadfast leadership.”

From Tuesday, during a two-day meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania, Nato allies will also discuss the prospect of Ukraine joining.

It has been agreed that although Ukraine cannot join during the war, a measure has been removed to allow the nation to join more quickly after the conflict is over.

The Membership Action Plan, which involves a host of bureaucratic and military reforms designed to ensure a prospective member is up to NATO standards, is no longer a requirement for Ukraine to join.

However, the move has sparked outrage in Moscow.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "You know the absolutely clear and consistent position of the Russian Federation that Ukraine's membership in NATO will have very, very negative consequences for the security architecture, the already half-destroyed security architecture in Europe.

"And it will be an absolute danger, a threat to our country, which will require from us a sufficiently clear and firm reaction."