WORLD
'Sweden, Finland's NATO bid cannot progress unless Ankara's security concerns met'
Baku, May 26, AZERTAC
Turkiye has made clear to Sweden and Finland during a meeting in the capital Ankara that their NATO bid cannot progress unless Ankara's security concerns are met through concrete steps and a certain timeframe, the presidential spokesman said on Wednesday, according to Anadolu Agency.
Noting that PKK, YPG, and PYD are all same terror groups, Turkiye conveyed its expectations on this matter to the delegations from Sweden and Finland during the meeting, Ibrahim Kalin told a news conference following the closed-door consultative meeting that lasted nearly five hours.
In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Turkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkiye, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of at least 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG/PYD is PKK’s Syrian offshoot.
"In the reports prepared on the PYD/YPG, we explained that the organization committed war crimes. Therefore, we expressed that the reports should not be hidden in order to acquit the PYD/YPG.
"We stated that if Turkiye's security concerns are not met with concrete steps, the process will not progress. The delegations received our message. They will discuss our demands with their leaders and they will respond to us," he said.
Turkiye expects the "correct implementation" of the 1999 NATO summit principles and procedures related to the alliance membership process, Kalin added.
He underlined that Ankara has been making extradition requests to Sweden and Finland for the last 10 years.