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NATO’s expansion amid the most significant threat to Europe since World War II appears unlikely as Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday reiterated his opposition to NATO membership for Sweden and Finland.
Erdogan had suggested in recent days that he could cause trouble for Stockholm and Helsinki as they tried to join the 30-member alliance.
But the Turkish President’s comments Thursday spelled out a more definite conclusion to the European nations bolstering their security defenses through NATO.
FILE - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrives for a welcoming ceremony for his Algerian counterpart, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, in Ankara, Turkey, on May 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici, File)
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Speaking to a group of young Turks in a video posted to his Twitter, Erdogan accused Sweden and Finland of being a "home to terror[ists]" – a comment that references his displeasure at their refusal to extradite individuals Turkey has deemed "terrorists."
"NATO is a security organization, we cannot accept the presence of terrorist organizations in it," Erdogan said according to a translation by Turkish media.
The Turkish president accused not only the two European nations, but top NATO nations like the U.S., of turning a blind eye to "harassment" its claims to have endured from members of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
The PKK has been designated a terrorist group by the U.S., the European Union and Turkey.
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But the group’s relation to affiliate members fighting ISIS in Syria under the People’s Protection Forces (YPG) – which is backed by some Western nations – has strained geopolitical ties.
"Regarding NATO, Sweden and Finland are all the ones that host our terrorist centers in their own countries. And they will host the PKK, the YPG," he added.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg championed the bids by Sweden and Finland to join the alliance Wednesday and claimed, "All allies agree on the importance of NATO enlargement."
"We all agree that we must stand together, and we all agree that this is a historic moment which we must seize," he added.
But Stockholm and Helsinki will need the green light from all 30-member nations, including Turkey, in order to get in with the security alliance.
Finland's Ambassador to NATO Klaus Korhonen, left, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and Sweden's Ambassador to NATO Axel Wernhoff attend a ceremony to mark Sweden's and Finland's application for membership in Brussels, Belgium, Wednesday May 18, 2022. (Johanna Geron/Pool via AP)
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Diplomats from both nations are expected to travel to Turkey to engage in negotiations.
Though Erdogan on Tuesday told them they "shouldn’t bother" coming.