Turkive's approval of Sweden's NATO accession was being linked to the F-16 sale

Türkiye's Erdogan stands aside, letting Sweden join NATO—and gets a White House green light for F-16s worth $20 billion. The Turkish president suddenly dropped his resistance to Sweden's accession after a meeting with Stockholm's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Monday in Lithuania.

Erdogan's reversal virtually ensured this year's NATO summit would be viewed as a major success, paving the way to expand the Russia-focused alliance to 32 nations as Moscow continues its invasion of eastern Europe. The alliance recently added Finland, which requested membership in the weeks immediately following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. But Erdogan blocked Sweden's similar request, insisting Stockholm stop supporting Kurdish separatists who have been waging an insurgency with Ankara for decades.

As part of Monday's talks in Vilnius, Sweden agreed to "actively support efforts to reinvigorate Türkiye's EU accession process," about which Erdogan demanded progress in remarks to reporters Monday in Ankara. The two countries also promised "to maximize opportunities to increase bilateral trade and investments," while Stockholm vowed to create "a roadmap as the basis of its continued fight against terrorism in all its forms," according to a joint statement from Kristersson, Erdogan, and Stoltenberg.


Next up: Erdogan said he'll forward Sweden's accession to the Turkish parliament, known as the Grand National Assembly. However, those lawmakers aren't scheduled to meet again until after the summer.

For the record: "Both Turkish officials and the Biden administration have rejected any suggestion that Ankara's approval of Sweden's NATO accession was being linked to the F-16 sale in the months of talks to address Turkish opposition," Reuters reports.

President Biden "has placed no caveats or conditions on [the F-16 deal] in his public and private comments over the past few months," National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters Tuesday in Vilnius. "And he intends to move forward with that transfer in consultation with Congress."

"I welcome the statement issued by Türkiye, Sweden and the NATO Secretary General this evening, including the commitment by President Erdoğan to transmit the Accession Protocol for Sweden to Türkiye's Grand National Assembly for swift ratification," Biden said in his own statement Monday. "I stand ready to work with President Erdoğan and Türkiye on enhancing defense and deterrence in the Euro-Atlantic area," he added.

Biden is in Lithuania for the NATO summit. He last visited Vilnius in March 2014, just after Russia initially invaded Ukraine, when he was vice president in the Obama White House. With his visit Tuesday, Biden is now just the second U.S. president to visit the Baltic nation, behind George W. Bush back in late 2002, according to White House officials.