An airplane carrying Sweden’s foreign and justice ministers returned to Stockholm after experiencing a technical problem while on the way to Turkey, and a key security meeting will thus be postponed, Reuters reported, citing Swedish officials on Wednesday.
The crew and passengers were not in any immediate danger, and a new date will be set for the meeting, Sweden’s foreign ministry said.
Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard and Justice Minister Gunnar Strommer had been due to have their first meeting with Turkish officials addressing a security pact agreed to ensure Ankara’s approval of Stockholm’s NATO membership bid.
Turkey approved Sweden’s bid to join the military alliance in January after a more than year-long delay over Ankara’s concerns about Sweden’s stance on groups and individuals it deems terrorists, and over an arms embargo that Stockholm later lifted.
As part of the approval, Ankara demanded that Stockholm amend its counterterrorism laws and crack down on Turkish opponents and members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), labelled as a terrorist group by the United States and European Union.
The formation of the “Security Compact” was agreed by NATO’s then-chief Jens Stoltenberg and Turkish and Swedish leaders at an alliance summit in 2023. The parties had also agreed that Stockholm would present a “roadmap” on counterterrorism.
Sweden joined NATO in March.