The timing is significant as NATO's annual summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, approaches, and Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has launched a last-ditch effort to find common ground and persuade Türkiye to endorse Sweden's entry into the military alliance before the event.

The Turkish delegation will include Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Head of the National Intelligence Organization (MİT) İbrahim Kalın, and Presidential Chief Advisor Akif Çağatay Kılıç.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan stated that an assessment will be made following this meeting but rejected any pressure to expedite the Swedish approval process before the annual summit.

Stoltenberg, on the other hand, believes that the time has come to fully welcome Sweden as a NATO member. Sweden itself is eager to join the alliance before the upcoming summit, scheduled for July 11-12, where 31 members will gather.

The discussions will involve the participation of foreign ministers, intelligence chiefs, and security advisors from the three countries. Sweden applied for NATO membership last year in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and growing concerns in Europe. Initially, Sweden and Finland aimed to join NATO together, but Türkiye's objections to Sweden's membership led Finland to independently join the alliance in April.

Türkiye has expressed concerns about Sweden's leniency towards terrorist groups and is pushing for concrete action in the fight against them. Despite Sweden amending its anti-terror legislation since applying for NATO membership, Türkiye argues that supporters of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) can still freely organize demonstrations, recruit members, and access financial resources within Sweden.

Following the meeting of senior officials from Türkiye, Sweden, and Finland, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg will hold a media briefing at NATO Headquarters on Thursday. The briefing will commence immediately after the conclusion of the officials' meeting. (ILKHA)