Sweden: NATO talks with Turkey to resume in March

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has said talks with Turkey on NATO membership will resume in mid-March.

Talks between the two countries were postponed after Turkey reacted harshly to Koran burning demonstrations in January.

“There is also a date (for the talks), it is not a secret, but we are waiting for confirmation,” Kristersson said in an interview with Sweden’s SVT channel.

Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu also stated earlier in the week that the talks would resume soon.

Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, but Sweden faced objections from Turkey. Ankara’s approval is required for the two countries to become NATO members.

Ankara, on the other hand, wants Sweden to take a clear position against the PKK, the YPG and those responsible for the 2016 coup attempt. Talks between the countries came to a halt in January following demonstrations in Sweden, to which Turkey he reacted harshly. (Reuters)