Erdogan warns Turkey may still block Nordic Nato drive

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday told Sweden and Finland that he could still block their drives to join Nato if they fail to implement a new accession deal with Ankara. Erdogan issued his blunt warning at the end of a Nato summit at which the US-led alliance formally invited the Nordic countries to join the 30-nation bloc. The two nations dropped their history of military non-alignment and announced plans to join Nato in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Their bids were headed for swift approval until Erdogan voiced concerns in May. He accused the two of providing a haven for outlawed Kurdish militants and promoting “terrorism”. Erdogan also demanded they lift arms embargoes imposed in response to Turkey’s 2019 military incursion into Syria. A 10-point memorandum signed by the three sides on the sidelines of the Nato summit on Tuesday appeared to address many of Erdogan’s concerns. Erdogan lifted his objections and then held a warm meeting with US President Joe Biden that was followed by a promise of new warplane sales to Turkey. Yet Erdogan told reporters at an impromptu press conference held as the summit ended that the memorandum did not mean Turkey would automatically approve the two countries’ membership. New countries’ applications must be approved by all members and ratified by their respective parliaments. Erdogan warned Sweden and Finland’s future behaviour would decide whether he forwarded their application to the Turkish parliament. “If they fulfil their duties, we will send it to the parliament. If they are not fulfilled, it is out of the question,” he said. Erdogan delivered his message one day after Turkey said it would seek the extradition of 12 suspects from Finland and 21 from Sweden. The 33 were all accused of being either outlawed Kurdish militants or members of a group led by a US-based preacher Turkey blames for a failed 2016 coup. But Erdogan appeared to up the ante yesterday by noting that Sweden had “promised” Turkey to extradite “73 terrorists”. He did not explain when Sweden issued this promise or provide other details. Officials in Stockholm said they did not understand Erdogan’s reference but stressed that Sweden strictly adhered to the rule of law.