Sweden on the way to NATO: Turkey ratifies the application

On the evening of January 23, the Turkish Parliament took a historic step by approving Sweden's application to join the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO). The vote, which was taken by a large majority, led to the ratification of the application, setting the stage for Sweden's turbulent road to joining the world's largest military alliance.

In this historic decision, 287 out of 346 parliamentarians voted in favor of the application, while 55 representatives opposed it and others abstained from voting. This vote determined Turkish support and paved the way for Turkish President Recep Erdogan to sign the document, finally taking Sweden under his cautious wing.

The debate leading up to the vote lasted about four hours and focused on various aspects of Sweden's NATO membership. The debate covered not only the topic of accession, but also complex issues such as relations with the Islamic world and terrorism.

Earlier, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson received an invitation from his Hungarian counterpart, Viktor Orban, to visit Hungary. Orban expressed a desire to discuss complex issues of relations and future cooperation in the field of security and defense. This demonstrates the countries' efforts to find common ground and address security issues at the international level.

Thus, Sweden, which seeks to strengthen its partnership with NATO, is moving closer to full membership in the great defense alliance, and Turkey is acting as an important arbiter on this path.