To convey its indignation over a Kurdish demonstration in Gothenburg, Ankara is said to have called Sweden’s top envoy to the country.
According to reports, Turkey’s foreign ministry called Sweden’s top diplomat to visit the nation in order to convey the administration’s “strong reaction” to a Kurdish group’s demonstration this week in Gothenburg.
Officials described the gathering as “terrorist propaganda” to Sweden’s acting head of mission in Ankara. Reuters and numerous Turkish media sites have reported this, citing unnamed diplomatic sources.
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Recent tensions between Stockholm and Ankara have arisen as a result of Erdogan’s threat to obstruct Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership due to suspicions that the Nordic nations are harboring terrorist Kurds. In a tripartite agreement struck last month in Madrid, Sweden and Finland agreed to lift their prohibition on military sales to Turkey and take tougher action against people and organizations that Ankara has designated as terrorists.
Regarding the Gothenburg protest, Turkish diplomatic officials stated: “In this context, our expectations were stressed to identify the perpetrators of the act, take necessary legal and judicial measures, and take concrete measures against the background of the commitments in the tripartite memorandum.”
Supporters of the PKK and other Kurdish organizations that Turkey has deemed terrorist organizations took part in the march on Wednesday. Social media images and videos depict demonstrators waving pro-Kurdish banners, including PKK flags. According to Turkish media sources, the group’s flags were also reportedly flown from numerous poles in the city’s downtown, and some marchers were seen carrying a banner that said, “We are all PKK.”
Erdogan cautioned this week that if Sweden and Finland do not abide by the provisions of the Madrid accord, Turkey may still “block” their bids to join NATO. He remarked, “Sweden specifically does not have a good image on this problem.
