Türkiye calls Swedish envoy for planned desecration of the Koran
The Foreign Ministry summoned the Swedish envoy in Turkey’s capital Ankara over the country’s approval of a demonstration involving the burning of the Holy Quran in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm on Saturday, diplomatic sources said on Friday.
Staffan Herrström was told that Türkiye strongly condemns the provocative act, which involves hate speech, and that Stockholm’s stance is unacceptable.
The ministry also told him that the desecration of sacred values cannot be defended under “the guise of democratic rights”.
The ministry further said that Sweden’s approval of the planned demonstration by sympathizers of the terrorist group PKK and its affiliates in central Stockholm is a clear violation of trilateral memorandum signed between Turkey, Finland and Swedenwithin the framework of their NATO membership.
Ömer Çelik, spokesperson for the Justice and Development Party (AK Party), also condemned “the authorization of an action aimed at burning the Koran in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm.”
“What the Swedish authorities are doing is condoning hate crimes,” he said on Twitter, adding that “the Swedish authorities are encouraging fascism by allowing such acts.”
He also said, “any disrespect to the Qur’an is a crime against humanity.”
Rasmus Paludan, the leader of a Danish far-right party, was given permission to burn the Koran outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm, according to the Stockholm police.
At the same time, Sweden’s foreign minister Tobias Billström seemed to understand that the planned desecration of Islam’s holy book specifically chosen to be carried out in front of the Turkish embassy risks further “delaying” Turkey’s ratification of Sweden’s NATO bid. However, he said it would be “highly inappropriate” for him not to allow a person to carry out what he called “a demonstration”.
Sweden and Finland formally applied to join NATO in May, a decision spurred by Russia’s war on Ukraine.
However, Turkey, a vital NATO member for more than 70 years, opposed the two countries’ membership aspirations due to their tolerance and even support for terrorist groups.
A trilateral agreement signed between the countries in June stipulates that Finland and Sweden will not provide support to the YPG/PYD, the PKK’s Syrian offshoot, or to the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) – the group behind the defeated coup in Turkey in 2016 – and said Ankara provides full support to Finland and Sweden against threats to their national security.
Following the agreement, the leaders of NATO’s 30 members signed the countries’ accession protocol, an important step before their formal entry into the alliance. The lawmakers of all permanent members, including Turkey’s parliament, must now ratify the bids before the process can be completed.