On Saturday, Foreign Minister Tobias Billström (M) announced that the Swedish government no longer intends to support the Kurdish militia in Syria, the YPG, and their political branch, the PYD party.
Ibrahim Kalin works as a spokesperson for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and says that the Turkish government is pleased with Sweden's new stance on the matter.
- We see it as a very positive step, he says.
Does it affect Turkey's view of Swedish NATO membership?
- Of course it helps.
But there are other conditions that must be met.
According to Ibrahim Kalin, the Turkish government has pointed out the PYD and YPG's connections to the terror-listed PKK on numerous occasions, and then not only to Sweden but also to the US and other European countries.
The opposition: "A betrayal"
The announcement from the Swedish government comes just days before Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's planned meeting with Turkish President Erdoğan.
The new stance has been met with criticism from the opposition who claim that the decision was made without dialogue with them.
"The YPG/PYD has played an important role in the fight against the terrorist sect IS, and has had strong support from the West, including the United States.
The Kurds in Syria deserve a lot of credit for that.
That the Swedish government now wants to distance itself from them is a betrayal.”
writes Morgan Johansson in a written comment to SVT.
Hear Ibrahim Kalin in the video above about the Turkish government's reaction to the Swedish announcement