Swedish foreign minister condemns PKK terror group

Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said Friday that his country "condemns all terror organizations, including the PKK."

Billstrom, speaking alongside French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna at a news conference in Paris, said Sweden has fulfilled the last part of its commitment under a June 2022 trilateral memorandum signed in Madrid to address Ankara's security concerns on terrorism with a new anti-terror law, which has been effective since June 1.

He noted Stockholm's goal is the same as Ankara's: To fight terrorism.

Answering a question by Anadolu about where his government is in its fight against the PKK, he reiterated that Stockholm has fulfilled its commitments and that cooperation between Swedish and Turkish police has improved significantly.

"Sweden's stance on the PKK is very clear. That's why we wanted to fulfill everything written and decided in the memorandum to become a NATO member," he said.

Finland and Sweden applied for NATO membership soon after Russia launched a war on Ukraine in February 2022.

Although Türkiye approved Finland's membership, it is waiting for Sweden to fulfill commitments under the deal.

Several foreign ministers hope Türkiye would approve Sweden's bid ahead of a NATO summit next month.

But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made it clear that if Türkiye is expected to respond to Stockholm's expectations of accession to NATO, Sweden must also do its part on the PKK terror group ahead of the summit.