Turkey's parliament approves Sweden's NATO membership bid


FILE PHOTO: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks at a press conference during a NATO summit in Madrid, Spain June 30, 2022. REUTERS/Yves Herman

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's parliament approved Sweden's NATO membership bid on Tuesday following more than four hours of debate, clearing a last major hurdle to expanding the Western military alliance after 20 months of delays.

President Tayyip Erdogan's ruling AK Party, its nationalist MHP allies, and the main opposition CHP voted in favour of the bid in the general assembly, while opposition nationalist, Islamist and leftist parties voted against it.

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