Turkey rushes Sweden and Finland to meet their demands for NATO membership

14 Jan. () –

The Turkish Government has suggested this Saturday to Sweden and Finland that they satisfy their demands as soon as possible so that they lift their veto on the incorporation of both Nordic countries into NATO given that the Turkish elections will be held in less than six months, which could affect to the whole process.

The spokesman for the Turkish Presidency, Ibrahim Kalin, also recalled that the Turkish Parliament, essential to ratify the hypothetical lifting of the veto, could declare a recess a month and a half before the elections. “If they want this to be ratified, I foresee a period of two to three months”, he made it known during a meeting with journalists in Istanbul.

The spokesman has applauded Sweden’s efforts to comply with the Turkish demand to hand over alleged members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) residing in the Nordic country, but has regretted that the Swedish government’s reforms on the anti-terrorist law will take six months to enter into force.

Last weekend, the Swedish Prime Minister, Ulf Kristersson, declared this Sunday that the Turkish government is imposing on his country a series of demands to enter NATO that Sweden cannot and does not want to comply with.

“They want things that we cannot and do not want to give them and now the decision falls on the Turks,” declared the prime minister during the People and Defense conference held in Stockholm and reported by the newspaper ‘Aftonbladet’.

“The same”, the spokesman replied, “they can comply with this request by other means”, before once again asking Sweden to “demonstrate with actions, and not with words, that the people of the PKK have no place in the country, nor can it raise funds, nor can it recruit supporters”, according to statements collected by Bloomberg.