Advertisement

Updated January 30th, 2023 at 07:11 IST

Turkey's decision on Finland's NATO bid may 'shock' Sweden, warns Erdogan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that his government may take a decision on Finland's NATO membership that will "shock" Sweden.

Reported by: Amrit Burman
Turkey
Image: AP | Image:self
Advertisement

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that his government may take a decision on Finland's NATO membership that will "shock" Sweden. Notably, Ankara has held up Sweden and Finland's accession into the Western military alliance for months, demanding the Nordic nations end all associations with Kurdish militants whom Turkey views as "terrorists" and further extradite 120 terrorists to Turkey if they wanted Ankara's support for their NATO bids.

Erdogan said they couldn't recognise Turkey. "The Turkey of 20, 30, or 40 years ago is not the Turkey of today," he added, as reported by Sputnik. He further went on to say, "Sweden's prime minister does not speak Ottoman Turkish or Turkish. We told him that if you always tell us about NATO, you will return these terrorists to us. If you don't extradite these terrorists to us, we're sorry. We gave you a list of 120 names," he added.

Turkey may take 'shocking' decision on Finland's NATO bid: Erdogan

These remarks were given by Erdogan at a youth forum in Bilecik, western Turkey, on Sunday, where he said, "Look, let me tell you something here tonight: We can give a different response to Finland on NATO membership if necessary, and Sweden will be shocked when we give this different response for Finland."

After Russia declared war on neighbouring Ukraine, Finland, Sweden, and Ukraine all applied for NATO membership in May last year. However, Turkey has held their incorporation into the Western Bloc, and this can continue until the presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for June 18 are over.

Notably, the tension between Sweden and Turkey on the NATO membership issue escalated after a Swedish court blocked the extradition of an exiled Turkish journalist sought in connection with the 2016 Turkish coup attempt against Erdogan. Furthermore, the relationship between both nations soured after a series of anti-Turkish events were held in Sweden, which Turkey views as highly provocative, including the hanging of an effigy of the Turkish President outside Stockholm's City Hall, statements by senior Swedish officials painting Erdogan an "Islamist dictator," and the burning of Qurans in front of the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm by far-right politicians.

Meanwhile, Turkish officials have warned that if Sweden fails to take action against the Kurdistan Workers' Party, the relationship with Sweden will further worsen. Earlier on Monday, Erdogan warned that Sweden should not expect Turkey's support for its NATO bid if Stockholm does not put a hold on a series of anti-Turkish activities.

Image: AP

Advertisement

Published January 30th, 2023 at 07:11 IST

Your Voice. Now Direct.

Send us your views, we’ll publish them. This section is moderated.

Advertisement
Advertisement

Trending Quicks

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Whatsapp logo