Top officials from Turkey and Sweden head to NATO to try to overcome membership concerns

By LORNE COOK
Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — Senior officials from Sweden and Turkey are converging on NATO headquarters to examine President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s objections to the Nordic country joining the military alliance. They want to see what more, if anything, can be done to break the deadlock on Sweden’s entry. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg will lead Thursday’s meeting. It involves the countries’ foreign ministers, intelligence chiefs and national security advisers. Top officials from Finland, which joined NATO in April after addressing Turkish concerns, will also take part. Sweden gave up a history of non-alignment to apply to join NATO after Russia invaded Ukraine last year. Turkey accuses Sweden of being too lenient toward groups that Ankara says pose a security threat.