NATO membership process to have some issues to be discussed: Swedish supreme commander

By Atila Altuntas

STOCKHOLM (AA) - Swedish Supreme Commander Micael Byden said Thursday that it should be considered normal that there are problems with the country's NATO membership process.

Byden told the Swedish news agency TT that he "never" thought the membership process would be smooth.

"Whoever predicted that our NATO application will be a high-speed straight road, I think they have very high expectations," he said. "There will be problems, some problems will be discussed and then you will have to solve them."

He noted that even in the most difficult situations "we can overcome the problems by meeting with each other," and added: "At the moment, I don't find the situation that Sweden is facing in the membership process strange."

Finland and Sweden formally applied to join NATO on Wednesday -- a decision spurred by Russia's war on Ukraine that began in February. But Turkiye, a longstanding member of the alliance, has voiced objections to the membership bids, criticizing the countries for tolerating and even supporting terror groups.