Stockholm

Turkey's president finally approved Sweden's bid to join NATO on Thursday, ending months of delay and leaving only Hungary standing in the way of Stockholm's membership of the military alliance.

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Turkish legislators on Tuesday endorsed Sweden's membership in NATO, lifting a major hurdle on the previously nonaligned country's entry into the military alliance.

The legislators ratified Sweden's accession protocol by 287 votes to 55, with four abstentions. The ratification will come into effect after its publication in the Official Gazette, which is expected to be swift.

Turkey's parliament is widely expected to approve Sweden's NATO membership bid on Tuesday, clearing the biggest remaining hurdle to expanding the Western military alliance.

Sweden's Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said yesterday his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, had promised that Ankara would approve Stockholm's membership of NATO "within weeks."

Türkiye and Hungary are the only NATO members yet to ratify Sweden's bid, more than 18 months after it applied for membership.

The Turkish Parliament's foreign affairs committee on Thursday opened debate on Sweden's bid to join NATO, but adjourned the proceedings until a later date without reaching a decision.

Sweden on Tuesday welcomed a decision by the foreign affairs commission of Turkey's parliament to debate on Thursday a bill approving NATO membership for Stockholm.

"That is welcome information," Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said in a text to Reuters. Sweden looks forward to being a member of NATO." [Reuters]

The Turkish parliament's foreign affairs commission will debate a bill approving Sweden's NATO membership on Thursday, according to the official agenda of the commission.

A parliamentary panel will start deliberations on Sweden's accession to NATO on Nov. 16, the Turkish media has reported.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has told reporters he will try to facilitate the parliamentary ratification of Sweden's NATO membership as much as possible, but added Sweden had not taken sufficient action on Kurdish militants.