Paludan says Qur'an burning was somebody else's idea

The far-right politician Rasmus Paludan, who recently sparked a lot of controversy with his Qur'an burning protest, said that the act of burning the Qur'an was not his idea.

Paludan, who said in a previous statement that his aim with the action was to "provoking Türkiye, but things did not go as he imagined," said in a statement to the Swedish daily Expressen, claiming that journalist Chang Frick directed him for the Quran burning action.

Frick, on the other hand, claimed that he had contacted Paludan but that they did not discuss the burning of the Qur'an.

Stating that he first contacted activists who would demonstrate against Erdoğan, Frick emphasized that he said that what he supported was not provoking Muslims, but an act of protest against Türkiye.

Frick had paid 320 Swedish Krona to the police for the action.

Frick claimed that he became aware of Paludan's provocative action after he made the payment. Expressen's news also included the messages between the two.

On the other hand, speaking to the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet yesterday, Frick denied the allegations that the action made Sweden's NATO membership process difficult and said, "If this business was only hampered by my depositing fees in the police, it means that it was shaky from the very beginning."