Turkey to seek extradition of 33 terror suspects from Finland, Sweden
Ankara, Jun 29 (EFE).- Turkey said on Wednesday it would seek the extradition of 33 terror suspects from Sweden and Finland as part of an agreement to lift its veto on the two Nordic nations joining Nato.
Justice minister Bekir Bozdag said Turkey had requested the extradition of 17 terror suspects from the Kurdish guerrilla movement PKK and another 16 from Fethullah Gülen’s Islamist sect, which Ankara holds responsible for the failed coup of 2016.
Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, had previously raised a number of objections to the accession of the Nordic countries that he has accused of supporting Kurdish rebels that Ankara regards as terrorists.
“Now, after the agreement, we will request their extradition again,” Bozdag told reporters in Ankara.
On Tuesday, a consensus between the three countries was reached in which the Nordic states agreed to address Turkey’s concerns, including on weapons sales and the fight against terrorism.
Tuesday’s breakthrough followed what Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg described as a “very constructive” discussion with Erdogan, Finnish President Sauli Niinisto and Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson.
“I strongly welcome the signing of this trilateral memorandum, and I strongly welcome the constructive approach all three countries have shown during the negotiations. Finnish and Swedish membership of Nato is good for Finland and Sweden, it is good for Nato, and it is good for European security,” the Nato chief said.EFE
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