What did Turkey get for greenlighting Sweden's NATO bid?

A "historic step" for the Cold War era alliance — and a major win for President Biden's foreign agenda

Sweden, Turkey, and the future of NATO
Sweden, Turkey, and the future of NATO
(Image credit: Illustrated / Getty Images)

After more than a year of obstinance and obstruction, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan abruptly dropped his longstanding objections to Sweden's effort to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, just hours before a NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, was set to begin on Tuesday. Speaking with reporters to announce the move, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg called Turkey's decision "a historic step that benefits the security of all NATO allies at this critical time. It makes us all stronger and safer."

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Rafi Schwartz, The Week US

Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.