Finland's NATO bid has been ratified after Turkiye signed off on the country earlier in March, but the path for its Nordic neighbor Sweden is still unclear. Here's why.

Sweden and Finland signed an agreement with Turkiye in June of 2022 to begin the ratification process to join NATO, but Turkiye says Sweden hasn't lived up to its side of the agreement.

Turkiye accuses Sweden of harboring terrorists, members of the PKK, also known as the Kurdistan Workers' Party. The EU, UK, U.S., Turkey, and many others recognize the PKK as a terrorist organization. Ankara says Sweden has ignored its requests to extradite alleged PKK members to face trial in Turkiye.

Another sticking point has been Sweden’s approving Quran burnings in front of a mosque and later at the gates of the Turkish embassy.

Sweden okayed a permit to a far-right Swedish-Danish politician to burn the Muslim holy book, a move Ankara said was a hate crime.

Without Turkiye's approval, Sweden's NATO membership remains blocked and for the time being, since all members must ratify a new nation’s bid to join, there are no signs that Sweden will gain membership anytime soon.

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