Turkish parliamentary committee delays decision on Sweden’s NATO membership bid
Associated PressANKARA, Turkey — 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. Committee chairman Fuat Oktay later told reporters that the Swedish ambassador may be invited to the next session to provide further information on steps his country has taken to address Turkey’s security concerns. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lifted his objection to Sweden’s bid during a NATO summit in July and sent the accession protocol to Parliament for ratification last month. Earlier on Thursday, Deputy Foreign Minister Burak Akcapar briefed committee members on steps Sweden had taken to meet Turkey’s security demands, saying Kurdish militants were no longer able to find a “comfortable space for movement in Sweden,” the state-run Anadolu Agency reported.