Türkiye, Sweden, Finland deal 'not an end, but good start': Turkish defense chief

By Sarp Ozer

RIGA, Latvia (AA) - A trilateral memorandum recently signed at a NATO summit between Türkiye, Sweden and Finland is "not an end, but a good start," Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said Thursday.

"We expect them to fulfill their commitments," Akar said at a news conference with his Latvian counterpart Artis Pabriks in the capital of Riga where they discussed defense issues and NATO cooperation.

During the NATO summit in Madrid late last month, the leaders of three countries agreed on a trilateral memorandum to address Türkiye’s legitimate security concerns, paving the way for Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership bids.

The deal stipulates that Stockholm and Helsinki will not provide support to the YPG/PYD, the PKK's Syrian offshoot, nor to FETO, the group behind a 2016 defeated coup.

Türkiye, a member of NATO for more than 70 years, has pushed Sweden and Finland to meet their obligations.

The PKK is listed as a terror organization by Türkiye, the European Union and the US and is responsible for the deaths of 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.

- Grain export coordination center in Istanbul

Regarding the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul to oversee Ukrainian grain exports, Akar said: "The center is operational. Officials from Türkiye, the UN, Ukraine and Russia are working day and night for the ships waiting at the Ukrainian ports to start transporting grain in the coming hours and days.”

He said Türkiye continues its efforts to achieve a cease-fire between Russia and Ukraine and ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid.

The Center was officially opened Wednesday, comprising representatives of Türkiye, the UN, Russia and Ukraine to enable the safe transportation, by merchant ships, of commercial foodstuffs and fertilizers from three key Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea.

Türkiye, the UN, Russia and Ukraine signed a deal last week to reopen three Ukrainian ports -- Odesa, Chernomorsk and Yuzhny -- for grain stuck for months because of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, now in its sixth month.

*Writing by Diyar Guldogan