Sweden Could Join NATO By Summer, Says Kristersson

Sweden could be a part of NATO by summer, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has said.

"There is a chance, without any doubt," Kristersson told the Swedish news agency TT, according to a report on Thursday.

While he did not put a timetable on it, he said he hoped "it will happen as soon as possible."

Kristersson also pointed to the pressure that would be put on Turkey by a large majority of NATO countries.

"But it is Turkey that makes the Turkish decision and no one else."

Kristersson added that it was now a matter of cooling down the "heated situation," and that he was "ready to talk to Erdoğan at any time."

Sweden and Finland applied to join the NATO alliance last year.

So far, 28 of the 30 NATO countries have approved the applications, with only Hungary and Turkey holding out against them.

Turkey has indefinitely postponed NATO talks with the Nordic countries of Finland and Sweden due to what it described as their stance on supporting terrorists and anti-Turkey propaganda.