Sweden hopeful for NATO membership despite tensions with Turkey

Stockholm (Sweden), January 29: The tensions with Turkey over Islamophobic incidents are having an impact on the country's NATO accession process, the Swedish government has said, though Stockholm is still hoping to become a member by summer.The incidents of the past weeks have led to a temporary interruption in the NATO process, Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said on Saturday, according to the newspaper Expressen.He said the Swedish government was investing time and effort to move forward again and continued to hope that the process could be completed in the summer. Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson had also expressed optimism on this issue a few days ago. After decades of neutrality, Finland and Sweden applied to join the Western alliance last year, in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February.However, the ratification requires unanimous approval, and member Turkey has so far refused to agree, initially citing security concerns. Ever since, diplomatic efforts have been under way to address Ankara's fears. (dpa)Source: Qatar Tribune