President Joe Biden was suspended for a tense negotiation session with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Spain on Wednesday, but the nature of the meeting changed dramatically with the news that Turkey has released its opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO.

Although there will still be much for the two leaders to discuss, not least the war in Ukraine, the NATO news represents a major gain for the United States, the White House and the Biden administration.

SWEDISH AND FINLAND LEADERS GO TO THE WHITE HOUSE ON THE BORDER OF NATO MEMBERSHIP

“This is really good news for Biden and for the Biden administration, no matter how much or how little they did [behind the scenes], even though we all assume they have done a lot, ”says senior fellow Elisabeth Braw at the American Enterprise Institute. “The meeting will take place in a whole new light now, a much friendlier environment.”

“I congratulate Turkey, Finland and Sweden on signing a trilateral memorandum, paving the way for Allies to invite Finland and Sweden to join NATO at the Madrid Summit,” Biden said in a statement on Tuesday night. “When I welcomed President Niinisto and Prime Minister Andersson to the White House last month, I told them that the United States strongly supports their membership. Finland and Sweden are strong democracies with very capable military.”

The face-to-face meeting is the first since Erdogan raised objections to Finnish and Swedish membership in the alliance and comes after separate efforts from Finland and Sweden to alleviate the Turkish leader’s concerns. Each NATO member must approve the addition of a new country, so the two countries were left in limbo until the deadlock was resolved on Tuesday. Biden and Erdogan spoke on the phone earlier in the day.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said there was still no “fixed time or framework” for the personal meeting and downplayed the idea that it would focus on Turkey’s objections to Finland’s and Sweden’s membership efforts.

That will almost certainly not be the case now. But there will still be a lot for Erdogan and Biden to talk about, says Braw.

“It is safe to assume that the United States had a part in this deal and that Turkey will get something from the United States, so they will want to talk about it,” she said. “They will also want to talk about Ukraine and how Turkey can help shorten this war. Turkey is really the NATO member state that is best positioned to take action.”

Erdogan is not only the key to all dialogues with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but his country is also strategically located on the Black Sea, giving it the power to limit Russia’s ability to wage war and possibly help Ukraine export grain that has been stranded since. the Russian invasion began.

The rise of Sweden and Finland also means that NATO is more geographically adapted in northern Europe and better positioned to protect the Baltic states. The news received praise from both liberals and conservatives, who pointed to the military power of Sweden and Finland.

“Unlike other NATO free riders, Sweden and Finland have robust military capabilities and have demonstrated decades of cooperation with the United States,” said James Carafano, vice president of the Heritage Foundation for Foreign Policy and National Security. “They will help advance US interests by destroying Russia’s and China’s growing influence, improving regional security and making future conflicts less likely.”

Erdogan had protested against the two countries’ support for Kurdish militants, which he calls “terrorist organizations” and an arms embargo against Turkey. He reiterated these fears as late as this week and said he would give documents and pictures on the groups, before the sudden announcement that Turkey had put down its resistance.

Biden met with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and Finnish President Sauli Niinisto at the White House in May. Erdogan will meet them on Wednesday.

Experts first doubted that Erdogan was sincere on these points and only wanted to extract concessions, although that view changed somewhat when he insisted on addressing them. Everything went out the window on Tuesday afternoon.

“I look forward to working with NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg, our allies and with Congress to ensure that we can quickly welcome them into our alliance,” Biden said. “As we begin this historic NATO summit in Madrid, our alliance is stronger, more united and more determined than ever.”

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While still facing economic headwinds and consistently low approval ratings, Biden now appears to be returning home from Europe later this week with a big win in his pocket.

“It’s not just a breakthrough for Sweden and Finland – it’s a fantastic breakthrough for NATO,” Braw said. “This is incredibly good news for the Alliance and for Erdogan, who will receive a lot of appreciation and thanks for lifting his blockade.”