His comments came hours after Turkey called on Sweden to prosecute those responsible for projecting the flag of an outlawed group onto the parliament building in Stockholm, on the day of Turkish elections that extended President Tayyip Erdogan’s rule.
Sweden and Finland applied for NATO membership last year, ditching long-held policies of military non-alignment following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Bids for membership must be approved by all NATO members but Turkey and Hungary have yet to approve Sweden’s bid.
Turkey ratified Finland’s NATO accession in late March, but has continued to object to Sweden, saying Stockholm harbors members of militant groups it considers to be terrorists. Hungary has also not yet approved Sweden’s bid.
“We are in constant contact with our Turkish counterparts on this specific issue,” said Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson.
“We have a memorandum and we are fulfilling it and the very final part of that is actually being put in to force on June 1, the day after tomorrow, with a new piece of legislation in counter-terrorism. It’s an important step and thereby we have done what we have told our Turkish friends.”
Source- Hindustan Times.