Sweden reaffirms readiness to deal with Turkey’s terror concerns
Stockholm has confirmed its determination to implement the measures required under the tripartite memorandum it signed with Finland and Turkey during a June NATO summit in Madrid in response to Turkish public concerns about whether Sweden will take concrete steps to distance itself from terrorist groups .
Five months into the agreement, Oscar Stenström, Sweden’s chief negotiator for its NATO accession, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that constructive talks with Ankara continued in a way that fulfills the promises made in the agreement.
He said these promises were the top priority for the Swedish government, which was elected in September.
“We are working on all of them, we will fulfill the total agreement,” he assured.
Swedish lawmakers recently introduced tougher restrictions on freedom of association for those engaged in terrorism, one of Turkey’s key demands for the country to approve Stockholm’s NATO membership. – This will make it tougher for anyone involved in any terrorist crime, especially the PKK, says Stenström.
The diplomat offered condolences for a recent terrorist attack by the PKK/YPG on Istanbul’s Istiklal Street and said that Stockholm was always ready to do its part in the fight against terrorism. “The good bilateral relations that we have between Sweden and Turkey will be even stronger when Sweden is accepted as a NATO member,” he said, underlining that his country takes terrorism seriously and will fulfill the memorandum.
Improve security
Stockholm has long been criticized by Ankara for harboring members of various terrorist organizations, particularly members of the PKK and, in recent years, the Gülenist Terrorist Group (FETÖ) – the organization behind the defeated 2016 coup attempt in Türkiye.
Stenström said that was no longer the case. “Yes, we have changed. And we have better realized the security problems in Türkiye. This will also improve security in Sweden.”
Stockholm sees that “financing terrorism, financing the PKK” is a threat to both Turkey and Sweden, because it often goes hand in hand with organized crime. “This is harming Swedish society right now,” he claimed.
The demands that Ankara has cited in the memorandum will be delivered in full, noted Stenström, who confirmed that Sweden’s accession to the transatlantic alliance would make Turkey safer. The security apparatuses of his country are working in that direction, he added.
“Sweden must and will never be a haven for any terrorist, and that is why we are also expanding our cooperation between our security services. We are devoting more money to these services and defense. We will be happy to cooperate in NATO.”
Clamping down on the PKK
Türkiye has provided a list of wanted individuals to Sweden and expects the Scandinavian nation to take swift action to show that its demands are being taken care of.
“We have promised in the memorandum that we will handle the extradition cases. We have promised to go through this quickly and carefully to review the cases and also give each other good evidence,” says Stenström.
The official stressed that legal proceedings were ongoing on a case-by-case basis, and said security departments were given extensive powers to fight terrorism, with communication channels established with Turkish security services.
“And on the law enforcement side, the Swedish security service, as well as the Swedish police authority, have given new directives to work harder to find PKK activists and this is specifically aimed at the financing of terrorism. And, we have already seen there. where an expulsion last Friday.”
According to the Swedish government, each case will be treated individually and if found guilty, suspects who are residents will lose their residence permits, paving the way for their extradition to Türkiye. “The Turkish government and Turkish citizens can feel safe. We will work harder on this and we have already delivered and we will deliver.”
Bipartisan support
Highlighting the fact that Sweden has been militarily non-aligned for over 200 years, Stenström said previous governments had also acted following the annexation of Georgian territories in 2008 and the Crimean peninsula in 2014, while the Russian war in Ukraine has had a strong impact on society.
Although the Swedes have the EU’s support, this was not considered a strong enough defense shield. Stockholm recognizes a “major shift” in its security doctrine as it seeks the protection of NATO’s Article 5, which obliges all members to collectively support any ally under external attack. “Although we are very committed within the European Union, we need Article 5,” the official underlined.