During her interview with a Swedish channel, the former Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde expressed her understanding of Türkiye's concerns over terrorism and made a striking statement, acknowledging that Sweden is involved in financing the PKK terror group in Türkiye. She stated, "The PKK in Turkey receives financial support from Sweden."
With the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, the question of Sweden's possible accession to NATO and the veto decisions from Türkiye occupy the global agenda.
Although Sweden stated that it accepted Türkiye's conditions in the triple momerandum signed jointly with Türkiye, Finland and Sweden, the latest developments in the country indicates the opposite of this situation.
In light of the support provided to terrorism and the burning of the Qur'an in Stockholm, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has stated that Sweden's accession to NATO may not be possible at this time.
Sweden's Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom recently said that he was hoping for a breakthrough but underscored it remained a "Turkish decision".
"We believe from our point of view we have fulfilled all our commitments," he said.
However, in a striking confession, former Foreign Minister Ann Linde expressed her understanding of Türkiye's perspective during an interview for a documentary on Sweden's SVT channel.
Expressen newspaper, which covered Linde's interview, reported that despite the inclusion of a commitment in the recent agreement where Finland and Sweden pledged to combat the financing of the PKK and other terrorist groups, Türkiye holds the belief that Sweden has not fulfilled this obligation. ''Former Foreign Minister Ann Linde is ready to join this criticism." The newspaper reported.
In the interview, Linde said: "They are right in asserting that the PKK in Turkey is financed from Sweden. It is understandable for Turks to perceive that we do not take this matter seriously enough due to the absence of security concerns in Sweden."
"If we are going to be part of the same organization, it is legitimate for them to demand and expect us to demonstrate a serious commitment in the fight against terrorism." she added.
