The Turkish parliament’s foreign affairs commission approved Sweden’s Nato membership bid in a key step towards enlarging the Western bloc after many months of delays.
Turkey moved closer to approving Sweden’s long-awaited accession to Nato with a key parliamentary committee backing the bid, paving the way for a vote by the full assembly in Ankara as early as this week.
Turkey’s Foreign Affairs Committee endorsed Sweden’s entry to the military alliance, clearing one of the final hurdles for Stockholm.
The parliament is widely expected to follow suit when it votes, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signalling he’s in favour and his ruling AK party and its allies having a comfortable majority in the chamber.
Sweden would help bolster the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and strengthen Europe’s defences following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.
US President Joe Biden and European leaders have pushed Erdogan to approve the country inclusion.
