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Türkiye Takes Final Step On Sweden's NATO Membership

National flags of member countries in NATO flying outside organization headquarters in Brussels. (AFP)
National flags of member countries in NATO flying outside organization headquarters in Brussels. (AFP)
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Türkiye Takes Final Step On Sweden's NATO Membership

National flags of member countries in NATO flying outside organization headquarters in Brussels. (AFP)
National flags of member countries in NATO flying outside organization headquarters in Brussels. (AFP)

Türkiye's government newspaper on Thursday published a protocol on Sweden's accession to NATO, a final technical step in Ankara's ratification of the Nordic nation's bid to join the US-led alliance.

The Official Gazette's publication of the law on Sweden's accession to the alliance, which the Turkish parliament approved on Tuesday, ends a nearly two-year saga that tested Ankara's relations with its Western allies.

Erdogan had earlier signed the document, meaning that Türkiye has completed all its required steps, AFP reported.

Türkiye's green light leaves Hungary as the last holdout in an accession process that Sweden and Finland, which had adhered to decades of military non-alignment, began in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago.

Finland became the 31st nation of the alliance last April.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said Thursday he was ready to meet his Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban to help pave the way for Budapest's quick approval of the bid.

NATO membership applications require unanimous ratifications by all alliance members.

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Pakistan Says Clashes with Neighbor India Killed More Than 50 

Villagers look for the fragments in a crater outside a house damaged by a cross-border shelling last week at Kot Maira, a border village in Jammu region, May 12, 2025. (Reuters)
Villagers look for the fragments in a crater outside a house damaged by a cross-border shelling last week at Kot Maira, a border village in Jammu region, May 12, 2025. (Reuters)
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Pakistan Says Clashes with Neighbor India Killed More Than 50 

Villagers look for the fragments in a crater outside a house damaged by a cross-border shelling last week at Kot Maira, a border village in Jammu region, May 12, 2025. (Reuters)
Villagers look for the fragments in a crater outside a house damaged by a cross-border shelling last week at Kot Maira, a border village in Jammu region, May 12, 2025. (Reuters)

Pakistan's army said on Tuesday that more than 50 people were killed in last week's military clashes with India which ended in a ceasefire agreed by the nuclear-armed neighbors, restoring peace to their border.

The arch rivals fired missiles and drones targeting each other's military installations after India said it struck "terrorist infrastructure" sites in Pakistan and Pakistani Kashmir on Wednesday in retaliation for an attack on tourists.

Pakistan said the targets were all civilian. Its military said the dead in the attacks comprised 40 civilians and 11 of its armed forces.

India has said at least five military personnel and 16 civilians died.

Both agreed to a ceasefire on Saturday, following diplomacy and pressure from the United States.

The Indian military has said its bases are operational, despite minor damage.

It was a "very special experience to be with those who epitomize courage, determination and fearlessness", Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday, in comments posted on X accompanying photographs of his visit to the Adampur air base.

The base near the border in India's northern state of Punjab is a strategic location for its air force.

On Monday, Modi warned Pakistan that New Delhi would again target "terrorist hideouts" across the border if there were new attacks on India and would not be deterred by what he called Islamabad's "nuclear blackmail".

India blames Pakistan for an attack in Kashmir on April 22 targeting Hindu tourists that killed 26 men. Islamabad denies the accusations.

Hindu-majority India and Muslim Pakistan both rule part of the Himalayan region of Kashmir, but claim it in full.

The neighbors have fought two of their three wars since independence in 1947 over the region and there have been several other limited flare-ups, including in 1999 and 2019.

India has said the military operations chiefs of both nations spoke by telephone on Monday, reiterating their commitment to halt firing and consider steps to reduce troops on the border. Pakistan has not provided details of the call.