Turkey’s president has NATO talks with Finland, Sweden
The leaders of Sweden and Finland held separate phone conversations Saturday with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, who has said he opposes the applications of the two Nordic countries to join NATO.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine prompted the governments of Finland and Sweden to seek NATO membership, overturning policies of military neutrality that had endured for decades. NATO accession requires agreement from each of the alliance’s 30 members, which gives Turkey unusual leverage.
Erdogan has expressed objections that could slow the process and require negotiations to address its concerns. In particular, he has argued that Sweden offers tacit support to Kurdish separatists who oppose the government in Ankara and whom he regards as terrorists. Efforts by diplomats from Washington and elsewhere in the alliance to encourage him to soften that position have not been successful. Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO secretary-general, said he stressed the importance of the two countries’ applications in a talk with Erdogan on Saturday.
“We agree that the security concerns of all allies must be taken into account and talks need to continue to find a solution,” he said.
Turkey’s presidential communications office said in a statement that Erdogan called upon Sweden to lift defensive weapons export restrictions it imposed on Turkey over Turkey’s 2019 incursion into northern Syria. Erdogan also said he expected Stockholm to take “concrete and serious steps” against the Kurdish Workers’ Party, or PKK, and other groups that Turkey views as terrorists.
Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson of Sweden said Saturday that she appreciated her talk with Erdogan on her country’s application to join NATO, but gave no details on the content of the call.
“We look forward to strengthening our bilateral relations, including on peace, security, and the fight against terrorism,” she said on Twitter.
Erdogan told Finland “that an understanding that ignores terrorist organizations that pose a threat to an ally within NATO is incompatible with the spirit of friendship and alliance,” the statement added.
Finnish President Sauli Niinisto said he had an “open and direct” conversation with Erdogan on Saturday.
“I stated that as NATO allies, Finland and Turkey will commit to each other’s security and our relationship will thus grow stronger. Finland condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” he said on Twitter.
The calls came a day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain spoke with Erdogan and encouraged him to work with Sweden and Finland to address his concerns before a summit in Madrid next month.