Sweden's NATO bid delayed as Erdogan strains Turkey's ties with the West

The Turkish parliament's foreign affairs commission delayed a vote on Sweden's NATO membership bid on Thursday in a further setback to the Nordic country's hopes of joining the Western alliance after 18 months of delays that have left NATO allies frustrated. The move comes as Turkey’s President Erdogan prepares to visit Germany, has openly aired his desire to be hosted by Biden in Washington, is looking to purchase US F-16s, and doubles down on his support for Hamas while slamming the US, Israel, and the West. Sinan Ciddi and Endy Zemenides join Thanos Davelis to break down how Turkey’s holding up of Sweden’s NATO bid, its continued support for Hamas, and its lambasting of the West is playing out in Washington.Endy Zemenides is the Executive Director of the Hellenic American Leadership Council.Sinan Ciddi is a non-resident senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), where he contributes to FDD’s Turkey Program and Center on Military and Political Power (CMPP). He is also an Associate Professor of Security Studies at the Command and Staff College-Marine Corps University and Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.You can read the articles we discuss on our podcast here:Turkish parliamentary committee delays decision on Sweden’s NATO membership bidTurkey’s parliament to debate Sweden’s NATO bid as Erdogan eyes Biden inviteBerlin braces for Erdoğan’s anti-Israel vitriolGermany’s Scholz to Block Erdogan Plan to Buy Fighter JetsSenate unanimously adopts bill blocking US military aid to AzerbaijanUS Senate passes measure blocking US military aid to Azerbaijan