Ankara

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Turkish lawmakers will make the right decision on Sweden’s NATO bid in line with Turkey’s interests.

“Our parliament Will make the right decisions in the interests of our country,” the Turkish president said on Thursday while returning from the NATO summit held in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius on July 11-12.

Finland and Sweden applied for NATO membership in February 2022. Turkey finally approved Finland’s bid in March this year, but has yet to approve Sweden’s bid, Xinhua news agency reported.

Erdogan said, “Sweden’s NATO membership was one of the issues highlighted in the context of the (NATO) summit. Our principled position on this issue has been clear from the beginning.”

Before attending a NATO summit, Turkey’s president delivered a scathing speech on Sweden’s NATO bid, saying the EU would open a door for Ankara’s EU membership in exchange for Turkey agreeing to Sweden’s NATO membership. Needed