Sweden was sharply criticised for the way it is approaching Turkey in negotiations to join NATO by Human Rights Watch Director Tirana Hassan on Thursday.
Sweden applied for NATO membership in May 2022, but its accession to the alliance is being blocked mainly by Turkey. Ankara has imposed strict conditions on which it refuses to compromise despite appeals from NATO officials and several high-level meetings with Turkish leaders.
The Turkish government blames Stockholm for the support it gave to the YPG Kurdish group in their fight against ISIS, as Turkey regards it as equivalent to the PKK Kurdish terrorist organisation. In November, the new centre-right Swedish government announced that it was distancing itself from the YPG.
Director Hassan criticised Sweden’s move. “If Sweden is prepared to turn a blind eye to Turkey’s human rights violations for its own political gain, it is one of the most worrying trends we have seen in recent years,” Hassan told Radio Ekot.
Hassan pointed out that it is problematic that a democratic country like Sweden would choose to cooperate with countries like Turkey, which, according to the organisation’s annual report, highlights, among other things, the lack of freedom of expression and press freedom in the country. It also questions Turkey’s rule of law and bans on demonstrations.
“If Sweden wants to maintain its reputation internationally, it is not enough to be judged on how human rights are respected within the country, but also on which countries Sweden chooses to do business with,” Hassan said.
Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson recently said that Sweden neither can nor wants to meet all the demands made by Turkey, especially to deport several political opponents Turkey deems “terrorists”.
“From time to time, Turkey mentions individuals whom they want to see extradited from Sweden. I have said that these issues are dealt with under Swedish law. Swedish citizens will never be handed over to another country at all,” Kristersson said on Sunday (8 January).
But this statement provoked the ire of Ankara which retorted that “Turkey has demanded things that are in line with the multilateral agreement with Sweden and Finland. It is now up to Sweden and Finland to fulfil their commitments,” Ahmet Berat Conkar, described as a top figure in Erdoğan’s AKP party, told Aftonbladet on Wednesday.
Last week, a DN/Ipsos poll showed that there is strong support among Swedish citizens for Sweden not to give in to Turkey’s demands. Over 79% said that Sweden should stand up for Swedish laws and its principles as a constitutional state towards Turkey, even if it delays membership in NATO, whereas 10% believe Sweden should try to join NATO as quickly as possible, even if it means compromising Swedish laws.
(Charles Szumski | EURACTIV.com)
Source: euractiv.com
