Turkey calls Swedish ambassador for Erdogan puppet protest in Stockholm
ISTANBUL, Jan 12 (Reuters) – Turkey summoned Sweden’s ambassador to Ankara on Thursday, a diplomatic source said, during a demonstration in Stockholm where a puppet of President Tayyip Erdogan was hung from his feet.
Sweden has sought Turkey’s approval to join NATO, which it applied for after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. Ankara has said that Sweden needed to take a clearer stance against what it sees as terrorists, mainly Kurdish militants and the organization it blames for an attempted coup in 2016.
Finland and Sweden signed a three-way agreement with Turkey in 2022 aimed at overcoming Ankara’s objections to their NATO membership.
Staffan Herrström, Sweden’s ambassador to Turkey, was summoned to the Foreign Ministry on Thursday and Ankara’s reaction was relayed to him, a Turkish diplomatic source said.
“Our expectation that the perpetrators of the incident need to be identified, the necessary processes implemented and Sweden keep its promises was emphasized,” says the source.
Sweden’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Herrström was previously called in October for “insulting content” about Erdogan on Swedish public service television.
Protest scenes in Stockholm have been a particular issue cited by Turkish authorities in the past, with Erdogan saying members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) should not be allowed to parade around Sweden.
On Thursday, footage shared by pro-government Turkish media showed what they said was a protest by PKK members hanging a effigy of Erdogan outside Stockholm City Hall. Very few people could be seen in the pictures.
Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström said Stockholm condemned the incident but did not directly refer to any country.
“The government protects an open debate about political choices, but strongly rejects threats and hatred against political representatives,” he said on Twitter.
“To portray a popularly elected president as being executed outside City Hall is abhorrent.”
Sweden’s prime minister said on Sunday that Stockholm was confident that Turkey would accept its NATO bid, but that it would not meet all the conditions set by Ankara.
“That PKK terrorist can challenge the Swedish government in the heart of Stockholm is proof that the Swedish authorities have not taken the necessary measures against terrorism,” said the Turkish Presidency’s communications director, Fahrettin Altun, on Twitter.
Reporting by Huseyin Hayatsever and Ali Kucukgocmen; additional reporting by Johan Ahlander and Simon Johnson in Stockholm; Editing by Alex Richardson
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