Turkey to Support Finland's, Sweden's NATO Bids If Concrete Steps Are Taken, Ankara Says

ANKARA (Sputnik) - Ankara cannot agree to Finland and Sweden joining NATO without "concrete steps" taken by Helsinki and Stockholm, Fahrettin Altun, the head of media and communications in the Turkish presidential office, said on Monday.

"They are sheltering the YPG [the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units], the Syrian branch of the PKK [the Kurdistan Workers' Party] and FETO [the Fethulla Terrorist Organization. We cannot agree to Sweden's and Finland's membership in NATO until we are sure that permanent and concrete steps have been taken on these issues," Altun said in an interview with Italian newspaper Il Messaggero.

According to Altun, for Ankara to endorse Finland’s and Sweden’s accession to the alliance, the latter should show their commitment to NATO’s goals and values.

"If these states, which have remained neutral for many years, are accepted into NATO, we are committed to protecting them under Article 5. Therefore, we need to see that these countries have grasped NATO's values and goals and... are firmly committed to the security of the Turkish people. One of our alliance's priorities is the fight against terrorism. Despite being on the EU's list of terrorist organizations, this does not prevent the PKK from raising money, recruiting fighters and carrying out propaganda in the countries mentioned," Altun added.

On May 18, three months since the onset of the Ukraine crisis, Finland and Sweden submitted their NATO membership applications, abandoning decades of neutrality. Turkey blocked the consideration of their applications, however, and President Tayyip Erdogan said that Ankara could not consent as long as they continue to support Kurdish "terrorists."