Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun’s article on the visit of Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson of Sweden to Türkiye and Sweden’s NATO membership process was published in the Sweden-based newspaper Aftonbladet.
In his article, Director of Communications Altun noted that the declaration by the new government in Sweden that it would uphold the terms of the memorandum signed in Madrid was a positive development and that the new government took a principled stance by stating that it would fulfil the requirements of this framework negotiated by the previous government.
Director of Communications Altun emphasised that they considered Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson’s visit to Türkiye as a significant chance to advance bilateral relations, adding that “this visit has been interpreted as ‘Sweden has demonstrated its will not to submit to the impositions of terrorist organisations, especially the PKK’, and ‘Turkish people’s ‘legitimate concerns are understood.’”
Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun drew attention to some of Türkiye’s concerns in the context of Sweden’s application for NATO membership and noted that Türkiye requested Sweden, which wants to join NATO, to reconsider certain policies that are critical to Türkiye’s national security.
Pointing out that these requests specifically focus on two issues, Director of Communications Altun went on to say:
“First and foremost, we requested that Sweden remove all restrictions on the Turkish defence industry. As is well known, Türkiye manufactures a wide range of high-tech defence products, particularly unmanned aerial vehicles, and thus plays a stabilising role in the world. As a matter of fact, our defence industry contributes to the security of our alliance by selling to many NATO countries. Obviously, it would be an inconsistent behaviour, to say the least, for a state wishing to join NATO to impose restrictions on the Turkish defence sector, which contributes to NATO’s security.
The second issue is the unease felt when terrorist organisations that martyred tens of thousands of innocent Turkish citizens continue their financing, propaganda and recruiting efforts in Sweden. We are cautiously optimistic that the Swedish government will take concrete steps regarding our terror concerns, which it has acknowledged and pledged to address in the memorandum signed in Madrid. Considering that NATO allies have pledged to defend each other with all their strength if attacked, the fight against terrorism is essential for Sweden to join NATO.”
“The standard of news stories and commentaries in the Swedish media is concerning”
As an observer closely following the Swedish media, Presidency’s Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun expressed concern about the quality and standard of many commentaries and news stories he read about Türkiye in recent months.
While stating that reaching important decisions through dialogue and negotiation is natural and healthy in democratic countries, Director of Communications Altun pointed out that policies could be criticised in this context and that such criticism could be harsh.
Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun stated that some experts actually believed that the elections held in Sweden “served as a referendum on NATO membership” and added:
“We see that some comments aimed at both Türkiye’s sensitivity to the fight against terrorism and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan personally are not intended to inform the Swedish public. For instance, it is surprising that those who believe that speaking Kurdish on Swedish state television will irritate Türkiye are unaware that President Erdoğan has lifted restrictions on Kurds and launched a Kurdish-language state television channel. On this occasion, we learned that those who produced the same programme were unaware that the Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government, portrayed as Türkiye’s enemy and whose flag was screened, was actually our close ally in our fight against the PKK.”
Emphasising that whether Sweden joins NATO or not is a decision for the Swedish people and government, Director of Communications Altun stated that Türkiye respected this decision.
“On the other hand, we can only interpret the NATO membership debate based on Islamophobia or Turkophobia as a diversionary tactic or a defensive mechanism. We reserve the right to expect respect for victims of terrorism and Türkiye’s legitimate concerns,” said Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun.
The Presidency’s Director of Communications Altun reiterated that Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson’s visit to Ankara should be viewed as a historic opportunity for Sweden’s NATO membership, adding that Türkiye would consider Sweden’s application for NATO membership based on whether concrete steps were taken within the framework of the Madrid memorandum.