Turkey cancels Swedish Defense Minister’s visit
DAMASCUS, Syria (North Press) – Turkey cancelled on Saturday a scheduled visit by Sweden’s defense minister to Ankara in response to anti-Turkish protests in Stockholm.
Turkey’s Defense Minister, Hulusi Akar, said, “Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson’s visit to Turkey on January 27 no longer held any importance or point, so we canceled the visit.”
Ankara claims Swedish authorities allowed anti-Turkish protests outside of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm.
The Swedish Minister of Defense was scheduled to travel to Ankara this week by invitation of his Turkish counterpart. The two countries are currently embroiled in deliberations over Sweden’s accession to NATO.
Akar criticized the pro-Turkish protests in Stockholm and conveyed his country’s position to his Swedish counterpart on the sidelines of a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a 50-member military alliances in opposition to Russia’s invasion.
On Friday, the Turkish government summoned the Swedish ambassador in order to condemn the protests.
The Swedish government has given both pro-Turkish and pro-Kurdish groups permission to stage demonstrations outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm.