Swedish Ambassador Summoned to Turkish Foreign Office Over Links to PKK Party, Source Says

ANKARA (Sputnik) - The Turkish Foreign Ministry has summoned Staffan Herrstrom, the Swedish ambassador in Ankara, over meetings between Swedish ministers and members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is recognised as a terrorist group in Turkey, a diplomatic source in Ankara said on Tuesday.

"The Swedish ambassador was summoned to our Foreign Ministry after talks between Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde and terrorist elements. There was also a protest regarding a meeting in video format between Swedish Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist and terrorist leaders," the source said.

He explained that Ankara observed an increase in public contacts between Stockholm and the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces.

"With this dangerous policy, Sweden not only supports those who target the territorial integrity of Syria and the security of Turkey but also clearly violates international law, thereby causing serious damage to our bilateral relations," the source noted.

He also specified that Herrstrom was notified of Ankara's call on Stockholm to cease its "support [for] terrorist organizations and to strive for unity, territorial integrity and stability in Syria."

The Turkish government has been fighting the PKK, which seeks to establish Kurdish autonomy in Turkey and is considered to be a terror group by Ankara, since the early 1980s. The PKK and Turkey signed a ceasefire agreement in 2013, but it collapsed just two years later over several terror attacks allegedly committed by PKK militants.