Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström announced that his country had returned 3 wanted men to Turkey, within the framework of the tripartite memorandum regarding its accession with Finland to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Bilstrom said - in an interview with the Turkish Anadolu Agency - that Sweden has returned 3 wanted persons to Turkey, within the framework of the tripartite memorandum regarding its accession to NATO, and that it will take legal steps as soon as evidence and documents related to members of the Gulen organizations and the PKK or other organizations are revealed.
He added that the constitutional amendments approved by his country within the framework of the tripartite memorandum will enter into force as of early January.
He pointed out that the aforementioned constitutional amendments criminalize joining a terrorist organization, supporting it, or requesting its support.
He added that the government will present to Parliament, on March 7, a bill to amend the Penal Code, to criminalize identification and promotion of terrorist activities and waving flags of terrorist organizations.
He stated that his country is implementing the provisions of the tripartite memorandum "slowly," adding that "amending the constitution is not an easy task for any country, but we are doing this because we are committed to improving our capabilities in combating terrorism."
He pointed out that his country is taking these steps in cooperation with Turkey, expressing his gratitude for the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's welcome.
He stressed that these constitutional and legal amendments will dispel many of Turkey's concerns, noting that Ankara has concerns about financing terrorism.
He added that these concerns relate to the presence of people using Swedish lands to collect financial support for terrorist organizations, but stressed that this will become more difficult after the legal amendments that he talked about.
With regard to the Swedish Supreme Court's refusal to return the journalist Bulent Kenesh, whom Ankara accuses of belonging to the Gulen organization, which it considers responsible for the failed coup attempt in the summer of 2016, Billstrom said that the judiciary is independent in Sweden, adding that "the final word belongs to the government regarding the request for extradition, but the government is also bound by the court's decision.
He added that "the independence of the judiciary does not mean that we cannot cooperate with other institutions, such as the Public Prosecution and law enforcement units," and indicated that the new government in Sweden will implement what he described as a "smart policy" against the PKK.
In the aftermath of the Russian war on Ukraine, Finland and Sweden rushed to apply for NATO membership last May, and the NATO countries - with the exception of Hungary and Turkey - ratified the accession of the two countries, and the new members of the alliance need unanimous approval for their accession.
On June 28, Turkey, Sweden and Finland signed a tripartite memorandum of understanding regarding the accession of the latter two countries to NATO, after they pledged to respond to Ankara's demands regarding cooperation in the fight against terrorism.
Turkey, in particular, accuses Sweden and Finland of being lenient with the PKK and its allies, similar to the Kurdish People's Protection Units in Syria.