President Biden welcomed Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson of Sweden at the White House today to emphasize America’s support for the Nordic nation’s swift acceptance into NATO.

Sweden’s entry into NATO would be a significant blow to President Vladimir Putin of Russia, who has sought to halt the alliance’s expansion. Sweden broke from decades of neutrality when it asked to join after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.

But as the alliance prepares for a show of unity at a summit in Lithuania next week, the only major barrier is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, a NATO ally. He has been able to block Sweden because acceptance requires unanimous consent.

Erdogan’s objection centers on his accusation that Sweden has harbored Kurdish exiles and refugees associated with what Turkey considers a terrorist group. The U.S. has tried to placate the Turkish leader, including by supporting the sale of new F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, but Erdogan hasn’t budged. (The burning of a Quran in Stockholm last week could further complicate matters.)

My colleague Michael Crowley, who covers diplomacy, told me that Sweden’s acceptance remained more likely than not in the long run, but that Erdogan’s opposition should not be seen as halfhearted.

“Erdogan has a history of causing a fuss over stuff like this, specifically in the context of NATO, and ultimately he agrees to a deal in exchange for stuff that he wants,” Michael said. “The expectation is that that’s what is going to happen here. The only problem is: That’s what people were telling me their expectation was a year ago, and he’s still not backing down.”

The race is on to build A.I. bots for businesses

In less than a year, ChatGPT has helped change the way office work is done. Developers, for example, have turned to the product to hone or fix code when they’re stuck, speeding up the creation process. But companies have also grown wary of sharing their internal data with a public chatbot.

That realization has created an opening for tech companies, which are racing to build and sell A.I. bots that can be designed to fit a client’s needs. Some of the products produce code, and others analyze documents or summarize meetings.

More top news

• Ukraine: Russia’s war has divided Republican candidates between those who see a global role for the U.S., and those who are more isolationist. Here’s where they all stand.

• Washington: The Secret Service is investigating who brought cocaine into a guest lobby of the White House.

• Los Angeles: Roughly 15,000 hotel workers went on strike on Sunday as thousands of tourists, wedding guests and visitors arrived over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

• Climate: The U.S. approved the construction of up to 98 wind turbine generators off the coast of Atlantic City, N.J.

• New York: Yusef Salaam, one of the Central Park Five, was declared the winner of the Democratic primary for a City Council seat in Harlem.

• New York: Bill de Blasio, the former mayor of New York City, and his wife, Chirlane McCray, are separating. In an interview, they talked about how things unraveled.

• Vandalism: A man seen on video using his keys to etch his love for his girlfriend on a wall in the Colosseum in Rome has written a letter of apology.

A Wham! documentary

Remember Wham!? In 1984, the group released the infectious pop anthem “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go,” which became an instant hit. The heartthrob duo — George Michael, who died in 2016, and Andrew Ridgeley — are the subject of “Wham!,” a documentary released today on Netflix.

The film charts the group’s climb to pop stardom, from 1982 to 1986. Unlike bands that split acrimoniously, Wham! didn’t have a rise and fall. “It was just a rise and they called it a day,” the film’s director said.

Read Wesley Morris’s review.

Can anyone stop Djokovic?

Wimbledon began this week on the storied grass courts of the All England Club. The clear men’s favorite is Novak Djokovic, who has 86 Wimbledon wins — more than the rest of the top 20 players combined. This year, his most anticipated challenger is Carlos Alcaraz, who at 20 years old is already ranked No. 1 in the world. Alcaraz has spent much of the last month training and watching videos of Andy Murray in an effort to improve his ability on grass courts, the sport’s most quirky surface.

On the women’s side, there are three big names to watch: Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina. For Sabalenka, something larger is looming over the tournament: She is from Belarus and was banned from last year’s Wimbledon after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Want freckles? There’s a tattoo for that

They’ve been called imperfections, they’ve been the subject of schoolyard bullying and they’ve been covered up with makeup. But in recent years, freckles have become all the rage. Some people, inspired by the latest TikTok beauty obsession, have even opted get artificial sun kisses tattooed on their faces.

The ink is semipermanent — lasting about eight months to two years — and, unlike natural freckles, you can choose if your freckles look like spots, hearts, stars or astrological signs.

Have an endearing evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow. — Matthew

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