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The Republic of Turkey is considered one of the most important members of the International North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which was formed in 1949 from 12 countries, and Turkey joined it in 1952, and whose members have reached thirty-one, aiming to achieve political and security goals for the countries of Europe and North America, foremost of which is protection its members by all political and military means.

Turkey contributes to taking decisions related to the alliance through its ambassador to the North Atlantic Council, in his capacity as its permanent envoy at the political and main headquarters of the alliance in Brussels – Belgium, where specialized committees emerge that take their decisions unanimously.

Russia’s war on Ukraine contributed to prompting many countries to request joining the alliance despite their commitment to the principle of neutrality, in order to benefit from the misleading protection that the alliance provides to its members, as in the request of Finland and Sweden, where the NATO countries agreed to Finland joining it, thus ending seven decades of non-compliance. Aligned, to become the thirty-first member of the alliance.

As for Sweden, Turkey, along with Hungary, objected to its accession to the alliance, and therefore it cannot join it, given that the new membership in the alliance requires the consensus of the member states according to what was stipulated in the alliance charter. In other words, Turkey has the right of veto to prevent the accession of any new member. To the NATO alliance, especially since Turkey contributes the largest military force in the alliance after the United States of America, where the reasons for rejection identified by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan came as “the transformation of Sweden into a hotel or a guest house for hostile terrorist organizations, specifically the terrorist PKK with its various wings and arms.”

Based on the foregoing, Sweden is seeking to persuade Turkey to join the alliance, as it cannot achieve this endeavor except after obtaining Turkish approval.

– Legal advisor to Head Quarter Company