NATO Summit: Ukraine, Sweden and Türkiye on the agenda

Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, became one of the most protected cities in the world this week, just long enough to host a crucial NATO Summit on 11 and 12 July. The first burning issue was settled before the Summit even began: Türkiye agreed to support Sweden’s accession after 18 months of stalemate. In return, Sweden undertook to tighten its anti-terrorist laws against the PKK and to “boost” its support for Türkiye’s integration into the European Union, while the United States agreed to supply Ankara with F16s.

The NATO Summit was also preoccupied by Ukraine and its accession to the Alliance: although President Zelensky, who was present at the Summit, initially regretted the “indecision” and “weakness” of the allies, he nonetheless obtained new security guarantees and the assurance that Ukraine would join NATO on a fast-track basis as soon as the war was over.