Turkey has accused Finland and Sweden of backing Kurdish fighters and says it will not support the two Nordic countries joining NATO until they change their policies. Speaking at a joint news conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, Stoltenberg stressed that “no other NATO ally has suffered more terrorist attacks than Turkey” and noted its strategic geographical location with neighbors such as Iraq and Syria. “These are reasonable concerns. “This is terrorism, this is about arms exports,” Stoltenberg said. “We must address security concerns of all allies, including Turkish concerns about the PKK terrorist group.” He spoke at the Finnish Kultaranta presidential summer residence in western Finland. After decades of military engagement, Russia’s war in Ukraine prompted Finland and Sweden to apply for NATO membership in May. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, however, accuses the Scandinavian nations of backing Kurdish fighters whom Turkey considers terrorists and has vetoed their entry into the 30-member alliance. “When a vital key ally, such as Turkey, raises concerns about terrorism, then of course we have to sit down and take it seriously. “And that is exactly what we are doing,” Stoltenberg said. Demands from Ankara to Helsinki and Stockholm also include lifting restrictions on arms exports to Turkey and extraditing members of some Kurdish organizations opposed to Erdogan’s government. In recent weeks, the NATO leader has tried to resolve the dispute, but did not reveal on Sunday whether any progress had been made. Later Sunday he was scheduled to attend an annual panel discussion in Kuldaranda with Finnish and Scandinavian politicians, foreign and security policy experts and military representatives. Stoltenberg will visit Sweden on Monday for talks with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson.
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