NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg piled pressure on Turkey to back down over Sweden joining the alliance tonight.
Coalition leaders hoped to agree Stockholm’s membership before next week’s crunch summit in Lithuania.
But Ankara has so far blocked the bid, accusing the Swedes of harbouring what Turkey claims are militants from the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party, the PKK.
NATO Secretary-General Mr Stoltenberg today hauled in officials from Turkey and Sweden for showdown talks at the alliance’s Brussels headquarters.
After failing to break the deadlock, he has ordered Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson for crucial negotiations in Lithuanian capital Vilnius on Monday, before the formal summit begins on Tuesday.
“My aim is to finalise this process in the near future and to have a concrete and positive decision next week,” Mr Stoltenberg said.
“My main ambition now is to get this agreed by the summit. Of course there is no guarantee but we are working hard, we had a good meeting today, we are making progress and I am certain that we will continue to make progress over the weekend.
“Then I will meet with President Erdoğan and Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and hopefully we can find common ground to make a positive decision on the completion of Swedish accession into NATO.”
Finland and Sweden launched applications to join the organisation last year in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While Helsinki was admitted in April, Sweden’s accession has stalled. Months of tense negotiations have failed to end the stalemate - hampering Stockholm’s hopes of benefiting from NATO’s Article V self-defence and protection clause.
It states that an attack on one NATO country is an attack on all. Frustrated Mr Stoltenberg demanded swift progress to “bridge the gap”, warning: “We face the most dangerous security situation in Europe for decades, with a full-fledged war.”
Continuing delays to Sweden’s bid benefited Kremlin tyrant Putin and terrorists, he added. “Any further delay in Sweden’s membership would be welcomed by the PKK and President Putin,” said the Secretary-General.
“Sweden's membership will bring major military benefits to the whole alliance. Adding Sweden will allow us to plan for the defence of the entire Arctic, Nordic, Baltic region as one. It will provide an uninterrupted shield from the Black to Baltic sea region.”
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