Europe 1 with AFP 5:15 p.m., May 19, 2022

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday that he was "resolved" to block Sweden and Finland from joining NATO, again accusing them of harboring PKK and YPG terrorists.

The Turkish president also recalls the need for a unanimous vote for a country's accession to NATO.

Turkish President Erdogan again said he was "resolved" on Thursday to counter Finland's and Sweden's application for NATO membership, calling the latter a "nest of terrorists".

"We are determined to maintain our position, we have informed our friends that we will say no to Finland and Sweden who want to join NATO and we will persist in this way", declared the head of state before an assembly. young people on the occasion of Youth Day.

Sweden, "a hotbed of terror, an absolute nest of terrorists"

"This Sweden and this Finland are the countries that harbor the terrorists at home, the PKK and the YPG", he hammered about the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and its Iraqi Kurdish allies in the 'YPG.

The PKK is considered a terrorist organization by Ankara, but also by the United States and the European Union.

On the other hand, the YPG fought the jihadists of the Islamic State alongside in particular the United States. 

"We are very concerned about these two countries, especially Sweden, which is a hotbed of terror, an absolute nest of terrorists," he insisted.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan recalled the rule of unanimity within NATO: "If a country says no, the others cannot accept".

These words, recorded for a TV program to be broadcast Thursday evening, were shared in advance on Recep Tayyip Erdogan's official Twitter account.

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A hope that his concerns will be heard

In his address, the Head of State also denounced "Germany, France and Greece", which "welcomed members of the Fetö terrorist organization to their homes".

The movement led by preacher Fethullah Gülen, who has been living in the United States since 1999, is notably accused of having orchestrated the July 2016 coup attempt. "Fetö members travel across Europe via Greece and these countries ignore the list of terrorists that we gave them, they continue to protect them". 

Turkey has persisted for a week in wanting to block the enlargement of NATO to the two Nordic countries and hoped on Wednesday that the other member states "will hear its concerns".