Sweden did not take concrete steps on extradition requests: Turkish FM

ANKARA

Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said on Dec. 22 that Sweden had not taken concrete steps in extraditing “terror linked criminals” or freezing their assets, as Stockholm tries to convince Ankara to approve its bid to join NATO.

“There is no concrete development regarding the extradition of terrorist-related criminals and the freezing of terrorist assets,” Çavuşoğlu said at news conference with his visiting Swedish counterpart Tobias Billstrom.

Türkiye appreciated Sweden’s steps so far but it needed to do “so much more,” he said.

Stating that there is no hostility between Türkiye and Sweden, Minister Çavuşoğlu stated that the negotiations continue in a constructive manner but criticized a Swedish court’s decision to reject Türkiye’s request of the extradition of journalist Bülent Keneş. Sweden continues to be a “center of attraction” for FETÖ members, the minister stated.

Keneş was among the terrorists Ankara demanded from Stockholm in line with the trilateral agreement Türkiye, Finland and Sweden signed in late June for the two Scandinavian states’ entrance to NATO.

“Our defense industry companies did not receive the necessary positive response for importing some products from Sweden,” Çavuşoğlu also said.

Ankara requested Stockholm to lift its defense industry restrictions after Sweden applied to join NATO in mid-May.

The Swedish authority tasked with controlling exports of war materials said on Sept. 30 it had authorized military exports to Türkiye, after blocking them in 2019.

Billstrom, for his part, said his government had taken concrete steps on all elements of a trilateral agreement signed in June between the two countries and Finland.

Elaborating on the commitments made to Türkiye in the fight against terrorism, Billström said, “We are taking this agreement very seriously. We have started to take our steps and we will continue.”

“Supporting or promoting terrorism will now constitute a crime. Supporting PKK activities on Swedish soil will become a criminal offence,” the Swedish minister said.

Stockholm and Helsinki, which both reversed decades of non-alignment when they applied for membership following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, had expected the application process to be quick, as they had received assurances they would be welcomed “with open arms.”

Twenty-eight states out of 30 NATO members have already ratified the accession of Sweden and Finland into the alliance. Türkiye and Hungary have not yet disclosed when exactly they will approve the Nordic states’ joining NATO.