Turkiye sets rider for backing Sweden

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday he would back Sweden's NATO candidacy if the European Union resumes long-stalled membership talks with Ankara.

The latest twist in the long-running saga over Sweden's attempts to win Erdogan's backing came on the eve of a NATO summit in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius at which Western leaders want to showcase unity in the face of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Erdogan is due to meet later on Monday in Vilnius with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson.

Erdogan linked Ankara's approval of Sweden's NATO bid to Turkiye finally joining the EU.

"I am calling from here on these countries that are making Turkiye wait at the door of the European Union for more than 50 years," Erdogan said, speaking ahead of his departure for the NATO summit in Vilnius.

"First, come and open the way for Turkiye at the European Union and then we will open the way for Sweden, just as we did for Finland," he said, adding that he would repeat his call during the summit.

Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom told public broadcaster SVT that he expected Turkiye to signal eventually that it is ready for Sweden to join the 31-nation military alliance, though he couldn't say whether that would happen at the annual summit.

Erdogan has expressed frustration over what he describes as Sweden's failure to uphold an agreed commitment to deal with alleged Kurdish militants, who, he claims, are "roaming the streets" of Stockholm, reported the Agence France-Presse.

The friction originates from an agreement Turkiye arranged with Sweden and Finland following these nations' shift from years of military nonalignment, as they sought the protection of NATO's nuclear umbrella, after the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict last year.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg crafted an agreement at last year's NATO summit, which obligated Sweden and Finland to strengthen their anti-terrorism laws and deliver suspected militants to Turkiye.

Erdogan held fewer issues against Finland, which led to the formal inclusion of Helsinki into the alliance on April 4.

Since then, Sweden has revised its laws and revoked an arms embargo previously imposed on Turkiye in response to Erdogan launching an incursion into northern Syria in 2019, reported AFP.

Last month, the Swedish government consented to extradite an individual found guilty of drug trafficking and support for the pro-Kurdish PKK militia.

Erdogan has taken issue with a decision by Swedish police to allow pro-PKK demonstrations and protests, in which anti-Islamic figures have burned pages of the Quran.

Erdogan last week indicated his openness to further discussion and persuasion on the issue.

Agencies contributed to this story.

AP