Biden's Phone Call with Erdogan Regarding Sweden's NATO Membership

Joe Biden, the President of the United States, contacted Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the President of Turkey, before his trip to Britain to pave the way for Ankara's agreement on Sweden joining NATO, a process that requires the approval of all member states. According to Voice of America, Jake Sullivan, the White House National Security Advisor, stated, "I can't specify how close or how far this event is; all I can say is that we believe Sweden should join NATO as soon as possible. We believe there should be a way to make this happen." Ankara announced that Sweden has taken "steps in the right direction," but this progress has not been sufficient to support Stockholm's request to join NATO. In this context, Matthew Miller, the spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, also tweeted about the conversation between the foreign ministers of the United States and Turkey. Miller wrote, "Antony Blinken, the U.S. Secretary of State, spoke with Hakan Fidan, the Turkish Foreign Minister, about this week's NATO meeting and the importance of Sweden joining NATO." Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, both Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO. While Finland ultimately succeeded in joining NATO, Sweden's membership request has not progressed due to opposition from Turkey and Hungary. Turkey and Sweden have had a long-standing tense relationship. Sweden has repeatedly criticized Turkey for its human rights record and failure to adhere to democratic standards. In response, Turkey claims that Sweden shelters "terrorist" groups and has not yet fulfilled its commitments based on the agreement reached last June in Madrid. Sweden has enacted reforms, including a new anti-terrorism law, in response to Turkey's demands. Erdogan initially accused Finland of doing the same but eventually approved Helsinki's NATO membership request in April. Leaders and senior representatives of NATO member countries will gather in Vilnius (the capital of Lithuania) from July 11 to 12 to discuss a wide range of issues, from disputes over Ukraine's membership request and Sweden's accession to increasing ammunition stockpiles and reviewing the first defense plans in decades.