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Swedish PM to meet Biden to discuss NATO, Ukraine

July 2, 2023

Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has prompted Sweden to abandon its longstanding military neutrality and knock on the doors of NATO, seeking protection under its security umbrella.

https://p.dw.com/p/4TJVM
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson at a press conference in Stockholm, Sweden
Kristersson said 'the focus of the visit will be on Sweden's NATO accession'Image: Ninni Andersson/Government Offices of Sweden/Xinhua/picture alliance

Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson will be in Washington on Wednesday for talks with US President Joe Biden about the Nordic nation's NATO bid, trans-Atlantic security ties and Russia's war in Ukraine.  

The two leaders "will review our growing security cooperation and reaffirm their view that Sweden should join NATO as soon as possible," the White House said in a statement Saturday.

They will also talk about trans-Atlantic coordination on China, climate change and emerging technologies.

Kristersson noted that "the focus of the visit will be on Sweden's NATO accession."

"I am delighted that President Biden is inviting us to a meeting next week, before the NATO summit in Vilnius the following week," he said in a statement.

Sweden discards neutrality, awaits NATO membership

Who's opposing Sweden's entry into NATO?

Sweden, along with neighboring Finland, abandoned its longstanding military neutrality and applied for NATO membership after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

But Stockholm's entry into the military alliance has so far been blocked by two members, Turkey and Hungary.

NATO requires the unanimous approval of all members to expand.

The government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has opposed Sweden's bid, accusing Stockholm of being too lenient toward groups that it says pose a security threat, including militant Kurdish organizations.

To assuage Turkish concerns, Sweden struck a deal with Ankara last year, including a commitment to clamp down on groups like the Kurdistan Workers' Party.

Will Sweden bow to Turkey's demands on Kurds to join NATO?

Talks to overcome objections

Western officials had hoped the road to Sweden's membership would be smoothed out before the alliance's summit July 11-12 in Vilnius, Lithuania.

But earlier this week, Erdogan slammed Stockholm for allowing a protest during which a man burned pages from the Quran.

The incident further clouded Sweden's chances of quickly joining NATO.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said top diplomats from Turkey and Sweden will meet at the alliance's headquarters in Brussels on Thursday for talks to overcome Turkish objections.

Meanwhile, Hungary appears unlikely to approve Sweden's accession to the alliance before the autumn, according to a report citing parliamentary circles.

sri/lo (AP, AFP, dpa)