The move leaves Hungary as the last holdout yet to approve Stockholmโs application to join the US-led military bloc
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has formally ratified Swedenโs bid to join the NATO military bloc, finalizing the decision after months of political wrangling over the Nordic stateโs stance toward Kurdish militant groups deemed terrorists by Ankara.
In a presidential decree published on Thursday, Erdogan signed off on an earlier decision by the Turkish parliament to approve Swedenโs bid, some 20 months after the countryโs initial application. The final accession document will now be sent off to Washington for review, as is required under the blocโs regulations.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson hailed the decision in a social media post, saying it marked aย โkey milestoneโย forย โSwedenโs path towards NATO membership.โย In his own post, Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom noted thatย โonly Hungaryโsย ratification remains before Sweden can become a member of NATO.โ
