Why Turkey is opposed to Finland and Sweden’s Nato bids
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he opposed Sweden and Finland joining Nato because of their alleged support of Kurdish militants and other groups Ankara says threaten its national security.
Turkey’s approval is crucial because Nato makes its decisions by consensus. Any of its 30-member countries can veto a new member.
Erdogan’s Government is expected to use the two countries’ membership bids as leverage for concessions and guarantees from its allies.
Here’s a look at Turkey’s position, what it could gain:
What’s Turkey’s problem with the membership bids?
Turkey, which has Nato’s second largest army, has traditionally been supportive of Nato enlargement, believing that the alliance’s “open door” policy enhances European security. It has for example, spoken in favour of the prospect of Ukraine and Georgia joining.
Erdogan’s objection to Sweden and Finland stems from Turkish grievances with Stockholm’s — and to a lesser degree Helsinki’s — perceived support of the banned Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, the leftist extremist group DHKP-C and followers of the Us-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen who Ankara claims was behind a failed military coup attempt in 2016.
Many Kurdish and other exiles have found refuge in Sweden over the past decades, as have members of Gulen’s movement more recently. According to Turkey’s state-run media, Sweden and Finland have refused to extradite 33 people wanted by Turkey.
Ankara, which frequently accuses allies of turning a blind eye to its security concerns, has also been angered by restrictions on sales of military equipment to Turkey. These were imposed by EU countries, including Sweden and Finland, following Turkey’s military incursion into northern Syria in 2019.
Further justifying his objection, Erdogan says his country doesn’t want to repeat a “mistake” by Ankara, which agreed to re-admit Greece into Nato’s military structure in 1980. He claimed the action had allowed Greece “to take an attitude against Turkey” with Nato’s backing.
What could Turkey gain?
Turkey is expected to seek to negotiate a compromise deal under which the two countries will crack down on the PKK and other groups in return for Turkish support of their joining Nato. A key demand is expected to be that they halt any support to a Syrian Kurdish
group, the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, or YPG. The
group is a Western ally in the fight against Isis (Islamic State) in northern Syria but Turkey views it as an extension of the PKK.
Erdogan could also seek to use Sweden and Finland’s membership to wrest concessions from the United States and other allies. Turkey wants to return to the Us-led F-35 fighter jet programme — a project it was kicked out of following its purchase of
Russian S-400 missile defence systems. Alternatively, Turkey is looking to purchase a new batch of
F-16 fighter jets.
Other possible demands could include an end to an unofficial embargo on military sales to Turkey by allies; concessions from EU member countries concerning
Turkey’s faltered bid to join the bloc; and increased funds to help the country support 3.7 million Syrian refugees. —AP*