Stoltenberg: We will soon welcome Sweden as full NATO member

He said this during a briefing at the NATO Summit in Vilnius.

"We welcome Finland as a full member of the Alliance and look forward to welcoming Sweden soon, based on the agreements between the President of Turkey and the Prime Minister of Sweden," Stoltenberg said.

What we know about Sweden's accession to NATO

In May 2022, Sweden and Finland jointly applied to join NATO. In April 2023, Finland was admitted to the Alliance, while Sweden's application was blocked by Turkey. Later, Hungary also joined in blocking Sweden's application.

On June 14, 2023, the United States blocked the sale of HIMARS to Hungary because of Sweden's obstruction of NATO membership.

On July 5, the United States called on Turkey and Hungary to approve Sweden's NATO membership as soon as possible, as the country had fulfilled all the requirements and obligations.

On July 10, Turkish President Erdogan said that his country will approve Sweden's accession to NATO after Turkey is granted access to the European Union.

On July 11-12, a NATO summit is being held in Vilnius to discuss Sweden's accession to the Alliance.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, who arrived in Vilnius for the NATO summit on July 11, called the ratification of Sweden's accession to the Alliance a technical issue.