Erdogan would accept Finland in NATO, but not Sweden

The president of Turkey,

was in Prague on Thursday in favor of his country ratifying Finland's entry into NATO, but not Sweden's.

"Our relations with Finland are better and different from those of Sweden," Erdogan said at a press conference in the Czech capital, where he is participating in the first meeting of the European Political Community, a forum attended by 44 European leaders from both the Union European (EU) and outside the community club.

"Finland is not a place where terrorists roam freely,"

added the Turkish leader, assuring that his government is willing to do "everything possible" to facilitate the aforementioned country's entry into the Atlantic Alliance.

Ankara had blocked the entry of Finland and Sweden into the Atlantic Alliance, arguing that they give shelter and support to people it considers terrorists, but at the NATO summit in Madrid at the end of June the government lifted its veto in exchange for certain conditions, including the extradition of alleged "terrorists."

Erdogan has warned that the Turkish Parliament will only ratify the entry of the two Nordic candidates after verifying that they meet these requirements.

SWEDEN AND THE 'TERRORISTS'

Unlike the situation with Finland, Erdogan remains reluctant to accept Sweden.

"As long as terrorist organizations continue to march in Sweden,

our position towards Sweden will not be positive, it will not change," he said today.

On the other hand, the Turkish president

during dinner with the other leaders in Prague.

"Tonight I had a talk at dinner. I made my speech and the Greek prime minister was very upset. I'm not sure who gave him permission to speak and he said that I had made a very harsh statement about them," he revealed.

However, Erdogan did not give details about the content of the speeches of either of them.

"They (the Greeks) always lie,

their policy is based on lies. They want us to take steps and put several countries as mediators. Several countries wanted us to talk to them today (...) Right now there is no need to talk to Greece," he declared.

The two neighboring nations, both NATO members, have a long history of tensions, heightened in recent years by mutual accusations of violations of airspace and territorial waters in the Aegean Sea and the eastern Mediterranean.

MEETING WITH SANCHEZ

Erdogan reported that in Prague he held

with leaders from different countries, including the head of the Spanish Government,

and valued the European Political Community as a "very timely" platform.

However, he pointed out that "it is not an alternative to the enlargement of the EU".

"We hope that this political platform will help our accession to the EU," she stressed.

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