ISTANBUL, October 25. /TASS/. The ratification protocol on Sweden’s NATO membership has been forwarded to the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Turkish parliament, effectively marking the start of the process of its review by Turkish lawmakers, TRT Haber reports.
According to the TV channel, the date for the protocol’s review has not been set yet. A source in the parliament told TASS that this can happen next week.
Under the existing procedure, international acts are first being reviewed by the Foreign Affairs Commission, and, if approved, by the Turkish parliament in general. Once the ratification protocol is adopted, it must be signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and published in the official government newspaper, the Resmi Gazete, and then it will be considered being in effect.
Erdogan introduced the protocol on Sweden’s accession to NATO on October 23. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said later that Sweden has fulfill all its obligations before Turkey and is now ready to become a member of the alliance.
The protocol on Sweden’s accession to NATO has currently been ratified by 31 member states, with Turkey and Hungary being only exceptions. The agreement on prompt ratification of this document by Ankara was achieved between NATO, Turkey and Sweden ahead of the Vilnius Summit in July; however, back then, the Turkish side put forth a number of preconditions for the application to be approved, including cooperation on countering terrorism and acceleration of Turkey’s economic and visa integration with the EU.