As the Turkish authorities have repeatedly expressed their disapproval of Sweden and Finland joining NATO ‘because the two countries support the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)’, a senior representative of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) said on Monday that it is depressing to watch the Turkish administration discuss even the issue of new NATO memberships in the context of Kurds.
Saruhan Oluç, the deputy chair of HDP’s parliamentary group, said in a press conference at the Turkish parliament:
“This administration assigned itself the task of targeting Kurds wherever they live in the world. If there’s one in Sweden, that one is targeted in Sweden. If there’s one in Finland, then it’s Finland. In Germany, in France, in Netherlands, in Japan, in China. If there’s one in Australia, then it’s Australia. This is the mindset that is in power. It’s depressing to see that they discuss even the issue of new NATO memberships in the context of Kurds. Over 15 million Kurds live in this country and this administration cannot cover this up.”
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, in the meanwhile, confirmed his opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO in a press conference on Monday.
His remarks:
“Sweden is in fact the incubation centre for terror groups (…) There are PKK supporting terrorists in their parliament (…) No offence, but they shouldn’t be sweating themselves too much. We’ll not say yes and let those countries imposing sanctions on Turkey join NATO that is a security organisation.
NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg tweeted on Monday:
“Spoke with Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu about the decisions by our closest partners Finland & Sweden to apply for NATO membership. Turkey is a valued ally & any security concerns need to be addressed. We must stand together at this historic moment.”