Brussels rejects Erdoğan's demand: NATO membership and EU accession are two 'separate' processes

In remarks delivered on Monday morning, Erdoğan made a direct link between Sweden's bid to join the NATO military alliance, which his country continues to block, and Turkey's long-standing candidacy to become a member of the European Union, which has been on an effective standstill since 2018.

"Turkey has been waiting at the door of the European Union for over 50 years now, and almost all of the NATO member countries are now members of the European Union. I am making this call to these countries that have kept Turkey waiting at the gates of the European Union for more than 50 years," Erdoğan said, according to the Associated Press.

"Come and open the way for Turkey's membership in the European Union. When you pave the way for Turkey, we'll pave the way for Sweden as we did for Finland."

The quid pro quo made instantaneous headlines as it was put forward on the eve of a two-day summit of NATO leaders in Vilnius, Lithuania, where the topic of Sweden's application will be top-priority on the agenda.

"I support Türkiye's ambitions to become a member of the European Union," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters in Vilnius, without going into a detailed assessment of Erdoğan's comments.

The European Commission was however quick to dispel the notion that EU accession and NATO membership were somehow intertwined, insisting the two processes were "separate" and happening "in parallel."

Although the EU institutions have worked to deepen their cooperation with NATO, whose headquarters are also located in Brussels, they are careful to avoid depicting both organisations as overlapping or complementary in any way, given that three EU countries – Ireland, Austria and Malta – defend the principle of neutrality.

"The European