Turkey has been skeptical of the membership of Finland and Sweden and has accused the countries of supporting the Kurdish organizations PKK and YPG, which are in conflict with Turkey.
Sweden's Foreign Minister Ann Linde met on Saturday evening with her Turkish counterpart to discuss a possible NATO application.
According to Linde, no solution was reached and the two countries have agreed to let their respective diplomats continue the negotiations.
- We were very clear that we believe that the PKK is a terrorist organization.
But like many other NATO allies, we also have talks with other Kurdish organizations, said Ann Linde.
- For example, they think that in principle all Kurds in northeastern Syria belong to the same organization.
We do not think so, the United States does not think so, and so on.
Regarding the requirements for not allowing the PKK's presence and activities, Linde answers:
- We have the laws that apply in Sweden and we believe, just like the EU, that the PKK is classified as terrorist.
Looking for negotiations
Turkey does not close the door to Swedish and Finnish NATO membership.
But they want the countries to act against the Kurdish PKK's presence in the countries, states a senior foreign policy adviser.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that he did not view Sweden and Finland joining NATO.
- Scandinavian countries are guesthouses for terrorist organizations, said the Turkish leader, among other things.
The proposal attracted a great deal of attention because all NATO countries must approve new members.
A Turkish no could thus block both Sweden and Finland from joining the military alliance.
Now Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman and senior adviser to Erdogan, states that Turkey is nevertheless seeking negotiations with the countries.
- We do not close the door.
But we raise the issue as a question of Turkey's national security, Ibrahim Kalin said in an interview with Reuters.