“We will continue without changing our position”, said the Turkish president, who demands that Stockholm and Helsinki cut their ties with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party < /h2>
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of Turkey (REUTERS/Florion Goga)
The president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, reiterated for another week that he will not admit Sweden and Finland to NATO until he is fully convinced that both countries have cut ties with the Party of the Kurdistan Workers (PKK), an organization declared a terrorist group by Ankara.
“Until our expectations are met, we will continue without changing our position on the expansion of the NATO”, he said during a meeting of his ruling Justice and Development Party.
“Currently, heads of terrorist organizations roam freely in Sweden and Finland, under the protection of the Swedes and the Finns,” he added.
Both the President of Finland, Sauli Niinisto, and the Prime Minister of Sweden, Magdalena Anderson, and NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, have agreed that they all take into account Turkey’s “security concerns” in this regard to ensure the accession of both countries as a security measure against the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
However, the efforts of Sweden and Finland to convince the president that they have no relationship with these groups do not seem to have borne fruit. After indicating at the end of last month that the talks in recent days have not taken place “at the desired level”, Erdogan criticizes practically every time he speaks the alleged protections granted by these countries to the Kurds wanted by the Turkish government.
Sweden and Finland have formally applied to join NATO (REUTERS/Johanna Geron)
For entry to take place, all NATO members must approve the candidacy of the two Nordic countries< /b>, prompted by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. NATO leaders hope that the summit to be held in Spain at the end of June will be the opportunity for the historic expansion.
The group known as the PKK is designated as a terrorist entity by the United States and the European Union, including Sweden and Finland. However, the West’s attitude towards the PKK’s Syrian wing, the People’s Protection Units, or YPG, has caused acrimony between Ankara and other NATO members. The YPG form the backbone of the forces involved in the US-led fight against the Islamic State group.
Finland and Sweden have tried to negotiate a solution, and other NATO capitals have said they remain confident that objections raised by Turkey — which has NATO’s second-largest army — can be overcome.
Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General, announced last Wednesday that he will bring together top officials from Sweden, Finland and Turkey at the alliance’s headquarters in Brussels to unblock the accession of both Scandinavian countries.
At a press conference in Washington, where he met with the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, the former Norwegian Prime Minister confirmed that a meeting will be arranged “in the next few days” to ensure that the military organization “progresses” in the accession of Stockholm and Helsinki, which requires the unanimity of the 30 allies.
Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General (REUTERS/Leah Millis)
The Secretary General indicated that he hopes to make progress before the NATO leaders’ summit in Madrid at the end of June and avoided detailing what should be do the Nordic countries to save the Turkish veto.
For his part, the US Secretary of State reiterated the support of the United States for the candidacy of the two Scandinavian countries, assuring that there is a “great consensus” in NATO on the advisability of integrating Sweden and Finland, and hoping “to move quickly ” in the process.
The chief of the American General Staff, Mark Milley, met on Friday in Helsinki with the Finnish president to show his support for the accession of that country and Sweden to NATO. “It is clear that, from a military point of view, if the Finnish and Swedish bids are approved, they will significantly strengthen NATO’s military capabilities,” General Milley told reporters accompanying him on his tour.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Finland and Sweden should change their laws if necessary to meet Turkey’s demands and obtain their support for his NATO candidacy.
With information from Europa Press