Erdogan says no change in Turkey’s stance on Sweden’s NATO membership

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that NATO should not bet on his country approving Sweden’s application to join the Western military alliance before a July summit because the Nordic nation has not fully addressed his security concerns. Sweden and Finland applied for membership together following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Finland became NATO’s 31st member in April, but Turkey has held off approving Sweden’s bid. NATO wants to bring Sweden into the fold by the time the leaders of member nations meet in Lithuania’s capital on July 11-12. Turkish media on Wednesday quoted Erdogan as saying that Turkey’s attitude to Sweden’s accession was not “positive.”