Turks in Sweden call on Nordic country to stop supporting YPG/PKK terror group

STOCKHOLM (AA) - Turkiye’s embassy staff and Turkish nationals in Sweden are continued to be threatened and targeted by members of the YPG/PKK terrorist group.

The embassy accused Sweden of not giving them the necessary diplomatic protection against the YPG/PKK members, who are operating freely in the country.

Despite ongoing threats and violence against Turkish people in Sweden and its officials in the country, the Swedish government and police have not taken any measures.

Turkish Ambassador to Sweden Hakki Emre Yunt said: “We are very upset about it and we do not like it. We always inform the police about their (YPG/PKK members’) demonstrations, they caused danger to the embassy in the past.

“They attacked the embassy many times and just after I arrived here, they attacked one of my cars and broke a window. Police denied that it was done by PKK and they said that since they do not have cameras on the street, they cannot find them … I mean it is unbelievable that they cannot do this.

“Because if it was done in Turkiye, the police would catch them in two hours. So, we cannot understand these laws and rules in Sweden. Even they cannot find a simple criminal, I mean, criminals.”

The embassy walls were also painted with PKK slogans and posters on many occasions and the police “refused to take any action”, the ambassador added.

“We have a police booth in front of the Swedish consulate in Istanbul, but they (the Swedish government) only send some police cars to stand in front of (the Turkish) embassy for one day or two days and then they leave”, he said.

The Turkish Embassy continues to experience difficulties in its daily life in Sweden and says that the Swedish officials “are not always friendly and positive towards us.”

Yunt said: “When I ask for an appointment for some consular work to help any citizen of Turkiye, national, sometimes they become very arrogant, they are not very polite towards us.

“For instance, the banks stop Turkish people from sending money to Turkiye. They are treating them as criminals and so people are facing all these difficulties to live here and it’s hurting our economic ties and it is hurting our daily consular business.”

The ambassador said that Turkiye has found evidence that Sweden is supplying weapons to the PKK terror group and is urging the country to stop supporting and arming the terrorist groups that are threatening the security of Turkiye.

“When we fought YPG in Syria, we found some weapons which were made in Sweden. Also, they are not hiding that they want to help them financially … They already allocated some money to help them because they consider them as an ally in Syria. We have been showing them (the Swedish side) pictures of YPG leaders together with PKK leaders, but they don’t want to accept that.”

- ‘Horrible stuff’

Tufan Erdogan, a Turkish national in Sweden, said that he is “extremely sad” to know that his home country Sweden is supporting terrorist organizations.

“Well, as a Turk and a Swedish it makes me sad to see the Swedish government has supported YPG, it has supported PKK. Of course, we are sad because these are terrorist groups that have done some horrible stuff toward civilians.

“So, I have seen some numbers like $376 million that the Swedish government is using to fund the YPG, and if you look at how much they have spent on Ukraine during its war against Russia, it is just like 5 million dollars. YPG is a Syrian offshoot of the PKK terror group, so it is sad to see this support from the Swedish side.”

Can Kayhan, another Turkish national, thinks that Sweden should stop supporting terrorist groups.

“I would expect them (Sweden) to stop sending military equipment to these organizations because it is not good. Sweden is a neutral country; they have been for a very long time. I just feel it is wrong, it will just affect their reputation.

“For how many years they have never been in a war and now they are supporting groups, especially terror organizations. They are sending military equipment worth $300 million and I think it is wrong.”

With more than 40 Swedish-made AT-4 weapons and French and German anti-tank ammunition, the terror group targeted Turkish security forces in Syria between 2017 and 2021.

Despite the factual evidence put across by the Turkish government, Sweden continues its support of the PKK and YPG and refuses to admit that these two groups are “the same terrorist organization.”

The Swedish government has failed to offer any explanation to Ankara about how such high-intensity weapons ended up in the hands of the PKK. Many have suffered as a consequence of the Swedish military and economic support.

“Magdalena Andersson was elected prime minister with one vote in the parliament. It was the vote of a Kurdish MP of Iranian origin. In return for this vote, $300 million in aid was given to the YPG. This happened openly, not secretly”, said Dikran Ego, an Assyrian journalist based in Sweden.

In Syria's northeastern provinces such as al-Hasakah and Qamishli, Assyrians have faced massacres throughout history by similar terrorist movements.

“What we Assyrians want from the Swedish parliament is that the terrorist groups YPG and PKK should not be helped. Because these groups attack Assyrians and Ezidis. These groups should not be armed or provided financial aid.

“We Assyrians see PKK and YPG as terrorist organizations as Turkiye does. Because of these groups and terrorists, Assyrians suffer harm in Syria, Turkiye and Iraq. Today, Assyrians in Syria live under the terror of YPG. Assyrians are against supporting PKK and YPG”, Ego added.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Turkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkiye, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is PKK’s Syrian offshoot.

- NATO bids

Sweden’s and Finland’s support for the terror groups may jeopardize their entry into NATO as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has voiced objections to the membership bids, criticizing the countries for tolerating and even supporting terrorist groups.

“As long as they keep this attitude, we will not change our position,” Yunt said.

Finland also hosts the YPG/PKK terrorists and members of Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), which was behind the defeated coup in 2016 in Turkiye.

FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016 in Turkiye, in which 251 people were killed and 2,734 injured.

The Turkish government accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.

“We also have some other concerns like arms embargo and not extraditing certain members of terrorist organizations like FETO and PKK. So, issues are the main problems for Turkiye and that’s why we made a decision to block their (Sweden and Finland’s) NATO membership application”, Yunt added.