Magdalena Andersson

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke to Sweden's Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson on June 25  about the country's bid to join NATO, a statement by the communications directorate has said. 

According to the statement, Erdoğan said Stockholm needs to change its attitude towards PKK terror organization and its Syria branch YPG. 

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on June 13 he was "glad" that the Swedish government has confirmed its "readiness to address Turkey's concerns as part of assuming the obligations of future NATO membership."

After decades of military non-alignment, Russia's war in Ukraine pushed Finland and Sweden to apply to join NATO in May.

"Sweden and Finland can join NATO as early as the summer." This was reported by The Times, citing its own sources.

Finland is expected to apply to join the North Atlantic Alliance in June, followed by Sweden, the newspaper said.

"We are the new normal." This was stated by the first transgender minister in Sweden Lina Axelsson Kilblom in 2018. She takes office a year after Belgium appointed the first deputy prime minister for transgender issues in Europe, Swedish television SVT reports.

Sweden's parliament on Nov. 24 approved Magdalena Andersson as the country's first female prime minister, tapping the finance minister who recently became the new leader of the Social Democratic party.

Andersson was tapped to replace Stefan Lofven as party leader and prime minister, roles he relinquished earlier this year.

Sweden's highly contested response to Covid-19 left much of the economy open. Even so, the country is now headed for its worst recession since World War II.