At a time when Sweden needs Ankara's support to join the military alliance, protests in Stockholm on Saturday against Turkey and Sweden's attempt to join NATO, including the burning of a copy of the Koran, sharply heightened tensions with Turkey.
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| Rasmus Paludan burning Koran |
The Turkish Foreign Ministry stated, "We condemn the vile attack on our holy book in the strongest possible terms... Permitting this anti-Islam act, which targets Muslims and insults our sacred values, under the guise of freedom of expression is completely unacceptable."
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| People are protesting against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Sweden's NATO bid. They did this by arranging a demonstration. Source |
It made the statement after a far-right politician who was against immigrants burned a Koran near the Turkish Embassy. Sweden was urged by the Turkish ministry to take the necessary action against the perpetrators and all nations were urged to take concrete steps to combat Islamophobia.
A separate demonstration in support of Kurds and against Sweden's attempt to join NATO was held in the city. Outside the embassy, a rally was also held by pro-Turkish protesters. Police issued permits for all three events.
Tobias Billstrom, the Swedish foreign minister, described Islamophobic provocations as appalling.
Billstrom made the following statement via Twitter: "Sweden has a far-reaching freedom of expression, but it does not imply that the Swedish Government or I support the opinions expressed."
Rasmus Paludan, the leader of the Danish far-right political party Hard Line, carried out the burning of the Koran. Paludan, who also holds Swedish citizenship, has burned the Koran at several demonstrations in the past.
Paludan could not be reached immediately via email for a response. According to the permit that he obtained from the police, his demonstration was held in opposition to Islam and what was referred to as Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's attempt to influence Swedish freedom of expression.
The burning of the Koran was condemned by several Arab nations, including Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan. The Saudi Foreign Ministry issued a statement stating that "Saudi Arabia rejects hatred and extremism and calls for the dissemination of the values of dialogue, tolerance, and coexistence."
Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year, Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO; however, their applications require approval from all 30 member states. Turkey has stated that Sweden, in particular, needs to take a stronger stand against what it considers to be terrorists, primarily Kurdish militants and a group it blames for a 2016 coup attempt.
Speakers addressed several hundred pro-Kurdish and left-wing supporters at the demonstration to oppose Sweden's application for NATO membership and to show support for Kurds. They stood in front of a large red banner that read "We are all PKK," referring to the Kurdistan Workers Party, which is banned in Turkey, Sweden, and the United States, among other countries.
Thomas Pettersson, a spokesperson for Alliance Against NATO and one of the demonstrators, told Reuters, "We will continue our opposition to the Swedish NATO application."
Police said the circumstance was quiet at every one of the three exhibitions.
In response to the burning of the Koran, around 200 protesters set fire to a Swedish flag in front of the Swedish consulate in Istanbul.
SWEDISH MINISTER'S VISIT CANCELLED Earlier on Saturday, Turkey announced that the planned visit of the Swedish defense minister to Ankara had been canceled due to a lack of measures to control protests.
Separately, Jonson stated that he and Akar had decided to postpone the planned meeting after meeting on Friday at a gathering of Western allies in Germany.
On the sidelines of a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar stated that he had discussed with Erdogan the lack of measures to restrict Turkey-related protests in Sweden and conveyed Ankara's response to Jonson.
It is unacceptable to not act or respond to these protests. According to a statement released by the Turkish Defense Ministry, Akar said, "The necessary things needed to be done, and measures should have been taken."
Due to the anticipated protests, the Swedish ambassador had already been summoned by Turkey's Foreign Ministry on Friday.