Turkey's hard stance against Finland and Sweden's bid for membership has revived doubts over whether the country truly belongs to NATO.
has triggered a spat within the alliance otherwise united over the two Nordic countries' prospective entry.
On Thursday, Turkey blocked the start of talks around Finland and Sweden's membership over complaints that the two countries have too lax an attitude towards the Kurdistan Workers' Party and the Gülenist movement, two groups Turkey identifies as terrorist organizations. Ankara has accused Stockholm and Helsinki of hosting suspects belonging to the two groups, but the two countries have rejected accusations of supporting the Kurdish militants—the PKK is also recognized as a terrorist group by theThe situation appears to be at a standstill.
Ankara's objection could prove a real challenge towards a possible Finland and Sweden entry into the alliance, asfrom all its members to accept new members. So how's NATO going to respond to a member state that once again is proving an inconvenient, uneasy ally? Turkey has blocked the start of talks over Finland and Sweden's NATO membership. Above, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivers a speech during his party's group meeting at the Turkish Grand National Assembly in Ankara, on May 18, 2022.The idea was first suggested in 2016 when Turkish presidentcracked down on the opposition after a failed coup. It was then brought up again in 2019 when Turkey invaded northeastern Syria.
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