Turkey summons French, German envoys over PKK activities
ANKARA
Turkey has summoned ambassadors of France and Germany over the activities of the terrorist organization PKK on their territories, warning all NATO members, as well as Sweden and Finland, who wish to join the alliance, to end their ties and links with all anti-Turkey terror groups.
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, in an interview with state-run Anadolu Agency, highlighted the recent rise in the activities of PKK and other terror organizations in the European countries, informing that French Ambassador Hervé Magro and German Ambassador Jurgen Schulz were summoned to the Foreign Ministry in protest of the PKK’s recent demonstrations in these countries.
“They have been formally given a protest note as well,” Çavuşoğlu stated.
He made these comments while explaining why Turkey is objecting to the admission of Sweden and Finland to NATO.
Both Scandinavian countries formally applied to join the alliance after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but Turkey says they should first meet Turkey’s security concerns concerning their links with the PKK and its Syrian offshoot, the YPG.
“Our stance is very clear,” Çavuşoğlu said, repeating that Turkey won’t give a green light for their admission if they don’t meet Turkey’s demands that include concrete moves by Sweden and Finland about their political, military and economic supports to the YPG. These two countries don’t extradite members of the FETÖ who are being prosecuted in Turkey, either, Çavuşoğlu noted.
On a question, Turkey’s top diplomat recalled the efforts of NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg who invited the foreign ministers of two Nordic states and Turkey for a meeting at NATO. “We are not against diplomacy for the resolution of this problem. We thank the secretary-general for his efforts. But we have already handed these two countries a formal document about our demands. We cannot hold another meeting before we receive an answer,” he said.
Çavuşoğlu, on a question, stressed that Turkey could be “relatively” more willing for Finland’s joining the alliance.
Turkey submitted two letters to UN on Greece’s moves
Turkey’s top diplomat also detailed the recent escalation with Greece, which continues to militarize the islands whose de-militarized status should be preserved according to the international treaties Turkey and Greece are part of.
“Greece has changed the status of these islands. Greece should de-militarize these islands. Otherwise, a discussion over sovereignty [of these islands] will start,” he stated.
Turkey has submitted two separate letters to the U.N. in a bid to explain Greece’s illegal moves in the Aegean, Çavuşoğlu informed, highlighting growing anti-Turkey acts from Athens, including Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ efforts to dissuade American congressmen on the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey.
Lavrov will be in Turkey on June 8
On the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, Çavuşoğlu stressed that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will be in Turkey on June 8 to particularly discuss creating humanitarian corridors for the shipment of wheat and other agricultural products from Ukraine to avoid a major global food crisis.
“Lavrov will come here with a military delegation,” he said, informing that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has instructed all the Turkish state institutions to prioritize this issue after his talks with Russian and Ukrainian presidents, Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, respectively, last night.
“We have informed Ukraine about Lavrov’s visit and reiterated that our doors are open to them as well,” the top diplomat stated.