Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that the ratification of Sweden’s accession to NATO will not take place in the Turkish parliament before October. The Turkish president explained that this was due to the two-month parliamentary break and the need to analyze many international agreements and legislative proposals, which should be discussed in order of importance.
– Ratification of accession Sweden joining NATO will not take place in the Turkish parliament before October, the Turkish president announced on Wednesday Recep Tayyip Erdoganwho took part in the two-day summit of the North Atlantic Alliance in Vilnius.
The Turkish president explained that he would submit the ratification draft to parliament when it resumed its deliberations in the autumn, and then it would approve Sweden’s accession to NATO “as soon as possible.”
The agreement on Sweden may take precedence
– There is a two-month parliamentary recess and there are many international agreements to be examined, many legislative proposals to be discussed in order of importance. But we intend to put it behind us as soon as possible, said the Turkish president at a press conference in Vilnius.
“I think that when parliament opens its session, its president will agree to give this agreement precedence over other international agreements,” he stressed.
President of Turkey and Prime Minister of Sweden EPA/PHILIP SINGER
Erdogan also stated that Sweden was to present Ankara with a roadmap for steps Stockholm would take against terrorism before ratification. He indicated that he expected concrete steps against terrorism to be taken in accordance with the agreement between the two countries in exchange for the ratification of Sweden’s accession to NATO.
“We expect Sweden to no longer tolerate attacks on the Koran that offend more than two billion Muslims worldwide,” the Turkish president said.
Erdogan agrees to Sweden’s accession to NATO
Secretary General of NATO on Monday Jens Stoltenberg announced that Erdogan had agreed to submit to the Turkish Grand National Assembly a request for Sweden’s accession to NATO. However, the Turkish president stressed that the EU should “open the way” for Turkey’s membership in the bloc of 27 before the Turkish parliament accepts Sweden’s request for NATO membership.
Erdogan also said that Turkey could act as a mediator between Russia and Ukraine to reach an agreement to end the war if both sides make such a proposal.
He also said he had “higher hopes than ever” for the U.S. sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey after holding talks with the U.S. president the day before. Joe Biden.
On Tuesday, the US President’s National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan he said Biden had been working for months on the possibility of handing over the fighter jets to Ankara and Washington had made no “bargain” in the process of an agreement between Sweden and Turkey on NATO membership.
Main photo source: EPA/PHILIP SINGER