Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson said he is planning to visit Türkiye, amid ongoing tensions between the two countries over Stockholm’s failure to relieve Ankara’s concerns about terrorist groups. The visit to Ankara is planned for next week, Jonson told Swedish broadcaster SVT on Thursday in Stockholm. His Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar confirmed the schedule on Wednesday, according to state-affiliated Anadolu Agency (AA).
Tensions between Stockholm and Ankara rose last week following a controversial protest by PKK/YPG terrorist sympathizers, in which an effigy of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was hanged from its feet in Stockholm.
Türkiye strongly condemned the incident and canceled a visit by the Swedish Parliamentary Speaker Andreas Norlen to Ankara.
Sweden and neighboring Finland applied for NATO membership in May last year in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. With all 30 NATO members needed ratify a bid for approval, only Türkiye and Hungary are yet to approve the proposed expansion.
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban promised in November that ratification should be on the parliamentary agenda as soon as possible.
