Sweden allows military exports to Turkey after Nato application

STOCKHOLM: Sweden announced on Friday it had reauthorised exports of war materials to Turkey in an apparently significant concession to Ankara, which is threatening to block the Nordic country’s Nato membership.

Ankara requested the lifting of the restrictions -- which were introduced in 2019 following a Turkish offensive in northeastern Syria -- after Sweden applied to join Nato in mid-May. “The government has made the assessment that a Swedish membership in Nato is the best way to protect Sweden’s and the Swedish people’s security,” the Inspectorate of Strategic Products (ISP) said in a statement.