A Turkish parliamentary committee resumes debate on Sweden’s NATO bid

The Turkish parliament’s foreign affairs committee was poised on Tuesday to resume deliberations on Sweden’s bid to join NATO, days after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan linked the Nordic country’s admission on U.S. approval of Turkey’s request to purchase F-16 fighter jets.
NATO-member Turkey lifted its objection to Sweden joining the trans-Atlantic alliance in July but the ratification process has since stalled in parliament.
Turkey accuses Sweden of not taking Turkey’s security concerns seriously enough, including its fight against Kurdish militants and other groups that Ankara considers to be security threats.
This month, Erdogan threw another obstacle by openly linking ratification of Sweden’sNATO membership to the U.S. Congress’ approval of Turkey’s request to purchase 40 new F-16 fighter jets and kits to modernize its existing fleet.
The Turkish leader also called on the two legislatures to act “simultaneously” and said Canada and other NATO allies must lift arms embargoes imposed on Turkey.