Sweden For Min Won't Commit To Accession Date Amid Turkish Feet-Dragging

Speaking in Helsinki, at a 2+2 summit involving the foreign and defence ministers of Finland and Sweden, Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström states that he "Won't commit myself to any date for NATO membership [but] the start of the Turkish parliament process is welcome."

• However, signals from Ankara would seem to indicate that Sweden could be in for a lengthy wait for ratification from the Turkish Grand National Assembly. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has hinted that rather than expedited ratification procedure that was afforded to Finland, the GNA is at present focused on the 2024 budget, likely delaying the ratification of Sweden's bid.
• Following a visit to Ankara, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken stated that he believedthere would be progress in Sweden's NATO bid. There has been some speculationthat Erdogan is holding up Sweden's accession in an effort to put Turkey at the heart of international efforts to curtail the Israel-Hamas war.
• Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen: "Most pressing target for both our countries is to have Swedish NATO membership."