Finland’s Ministry of Justice announced that it had no intention to reopen six previously rejected extradition requests that Ankara had asked Helsinki to re-evaluate, Finnish news site YLE news reported on Friday.
Taina Neira, a senior specialist in legal affairs at the ministry, said in an email to Finnish news agency STT that there was no possibility of appealing those extradition decisions under the Finnish law.
“The reopening of the final decision could be considered if entirely new evidence were submitted that could have materially affected the decision,” Neira said, adding that Ankara has not provided new evidence for six extradition requests it wants Helsinki to re-examine.
Turkey renewed its extradition requests for Finland and Sweden regarding individuals Ankara considers as terrorists in early July, a week after the three countries reached a deal that ended Turkey’s veto to the Nordic countries’ NATO membership bids.
Stockholm and Helsinki agreed in return to “not provide support” to Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in north Syria, which Turkey sees as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
“Finland and Sweden confirm that the PKK is a proscribed terrorist organisation. Finland and Sweden commit to prevent activities of the PKK and all other terrorist organisations and their extensions, as well as activities by individuals in affiliated and inspired groups or networks linked to these terrorist organisations,” Article 5 of the memorandum said.
Turkey has also submitted extradition requests for individuals it claims are linked to what Ankara calls the Fethullahist Terrorist Organisation (FETÖ), a religious group Turkey accuses of orchestrating a failed military coup of 2016.