Turkish FM: Benefits of Sweden joining NATO highly debatable

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has said that Ankara strongly condemns the provocation with the burning of the Quran in Stockholm and considers the sanctioning of this anti-Islamic stunt against all warnings from Türkiye unacceptable.

Fidan made the remarks at a joint press conference with his Jordanian counterpart Ayman Hussein Abdullah al-Safadi in Ankara, Anadolu reports.

The head of Turkish diplomacy said all forms of xenophobia and hatred on religious grounds were unacceptable.

Fidan stressed that Ankara will continue to maintain a clear stance on the unacceptability of manifestations of Islamophobia in the world.

He recalled that various countries around the world had also criticised what had happened in the Swedish capital.

"The fact that such actions [anti-Islamic provocations] are carried out under the protection of law enforcement agencies suggests certain conclusions. Sweden's security system is not capable of preventing provocative actions and this raises questions in the context of strategy and security," the Turkish minister said.

The Turkish foreign minister explained that in the context of the strategy and security assessment, there is a growing debate about the benefits of Sweden joining NATO.

Furthermore, Fidan also commented on the normalisation of relations between Türkiye and Egypt, saying: "Türkiye and Egypt are two important countries connected geographically, culturally, strategically and religiously. We cannot afford to distance ourselves from each other.”

The Turkish foreign minister said it had been decided to restore the level of diplomatic relations between the two countries in accordance with the will of the Turkish and Egyptian presidents.

"We are once again appointing ambassadors on a reciprocal basis. This leaves behind a long road of normalisation," he said.