Türkiye, NATO, Sweden, Finland to hold 4-way summit

ANKARA

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Presidential spokesperson İbrahim Kalın has said Türkiye, NATO, Sweden and Finland will hold a quadruple leaders’ meeting on June 28 ahead of the NATO Summit in Madrid.

“Upon the request of the NATO Secretary-General [Jens Stoltenberg], a summit of Türkiye, NATO, Sweden and Finland will be held with the participation of our President [Recep Tayyip Erdoğan]. This summit will be on next Tuesday before the NATO summit,” he said, speaking in a televised interview on June 26.

He and Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Önal will pay an official visit to Brussels on June 27 for the third round of the talks as part of the decision taken during a phone call between Erdoğan and Stoltenberg, Kalın stated.

Türkiye’s participation in this summit does not mean that Ankara would step back from its position, Kalın emphasized.

“We want Sweden and Finland to take a clear and unequivocal stance against organizations such as the PKK, PYD and YPG,” he said.

The spokesperson cited his earlier meeting with the representatives of the two Nordic countries and said he conveyed the message that they give up the 200-century policy of neutrality, make a major paradigm shift and decide to join a military alliance.

“In order to achieve this harmony, you will have to make serious changes in both Sweden and Finland. The legislation will require amendments to the law and the constitution. We want you to show the same change against the PKK and its affiliated PYG, PYD and similar structures,” Kalın told his interlocutors.

This is no more difficult or impossible than any other major paradigm shift, and Finland and Sweden say they will take some steps, Kalın said.

“We noted their commitments. There’s a difference between making a commitment and taking concrete action. We want all of these recorded. We have reached a great deal of agreement, but there are a few issues that we cannot agree on. If we agree with them tomorrow, we will go to Madrid like that,” he said.

He recalled that on May 25, when Türkiye and the Nordic countries were negotiating, Swedish state television broadcast an interview with YPG-affiliated Salih Muslim. Kalın said he questioned the TV appearance and conveyed unease to his interlocutors.

“We say ‘don’t come to us with a lie just because the PKK is separate from the PYD.’ We want them to go for a paradigm shift,” he said.

The applications by Sweden and Finland to join the alliance will be discussed at the NATO Summit that will take place in Madrid on June 28 and 30. According to NATO procedures, a consensus of 30 nations is needed to give a green light to these two Nordic states.

Ankara complains that Sweden and Finland’s stances in the fight against anti-Türkiye terrorism are far from satisfactory. Although these countries have taken some steps, they are not fully addressing Ankara’s demands.