Pressure is growing on Ankara to drop its opposition to Sweden's membership of the US-led military alliance.
ADVERTISEMENTNATO's Secretary General urged Turkey to ratify Sweden's entry into the military alliance "as soon as possible" on Monday.
Stockholm "has kept its promises, the time has now come for Turkey to finalise the accession process," said Jens Stoltenberg at a press conference in Brussels.
The Turkish Parliament began in mid-November to examine Sweden's bid, which has been pending since May 2022.
Under NATO rules, all 31 members must agree before a new country can join.
Turkey - along with Hungary - is blocking Stockholm's entry into the US-led alliance, after having green-lit the membership of neighbouring Finland in March.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has used his veto power to get political concessions from the two Nordic countries.
Ankara has accused Sweden of showing leniency towards Turkish and Kurdish refugees inside the country, claiming they are "terrorists".
Some of those Turkey wants deported to its territory from Sweden are opponents of Erdogan, such as critical journalist Bulent Kenes, or Kurdish activists who have engaged in political activity against the Turkish government.
Critics claim that should Sweden meet Turkey's demands it could undermine the country's sovereignty, as well as the rights of those Ankara wants extradited.
Erdogan lifted his veto to Sweden's membership in July - specifying that the final decision was up to the Turkish Parliament.
Things have not progressed further, however.
Ukraine inflicting 'heavy losses' on Russia
NATO's Secretary General also made comments about the Ukraine war, during Tuesday's press conference.
Kyiv continues to inflict “heavy losses” on Russia after some of the “most intense” fighting since the start of the war in February 2022, he said.
"The Ukrainians were able to inflict heavy losses on the Russian invaders, both in terms of soldiers and combat capabilities," Stoltenberg said at the news conference, adding that these military losses occurred over the last few weeks.
He did not mention Ukrainian losses.
Since the start of its Spring counteroffensive, Ukraine's army has failed to achieve a decisive victory on the battlefield, causing concern in Western capitals.
"Although the front line has not moved", Stoltenberg claimed Kyiv continues to be very effective on the battlefield.
“We have to differentiate between the fact that the front line is not moving significantly and the fact that very, very intense fighting is taking place,” he explained.