01 July 2022; MEMO: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday that Sweden has pledged to extradite 73 Turkish nationals wanted by Ankara on terror charges in return for Turkiye's support for the Nordic country's bid to become a member of NATO.
Speaking at a news conference in Madrid at the end of a NATO summit, Erdogan said Turkiye will closely follow up on the implementation of the issues contained in the trilateral accord signed with Sweden and Finland.
Erdogan added that Sweden and Finland must fulfil promises they made to Turkey, explaining that the trilateral accord can only pass after the Turkish parliament's approval.
The people Turkiye wants to be extradited are those accused of having links to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and what Ankara deems is its Syrian offshoot – the People's Protection Units (YPG), as well as supporters of Fethullah Gulen; a Turkish cleric who lives in the US and is accused of orchestrating the 2016 failed coup attempt.
"What we witnessed during the process of Sweden and Finland's accession to NATO shows Turkiye's red lines with regard to the terrorism file," Erdogan said, stressing the need for NATO to show its determination to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
