Turkey says Sweden was complicit in burning of Quran amid tension over NATO membership bid - CNN

CNN  — 

The Swedish authorities was complicit successful the burning of the Quran astatine a protestation successful Stockholm past weekend, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu reportedly said Thursday.

Increased tensions betwixt the 2 countries travel astatine a clip erstwhile Sweden is relying connected Turkey to enactment its bid for rank of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) subject alliance, of which Turkey is simply a member, successful the airy of Russia’s warfare connected Ukraine.

Çavuşoğlu blamed the Swedish authorities aft constabulary successful the superior Stockholm authorized the objection by right-wing person Rasmus Paludan, and held it liable for the burning of the Islamic beatified book, according to authorities quality bureau Anadolu.

Turkish-Swedish relations suffered a large stroke past week aft the rally extracurricular the city’s Turkish Embassy past Saturday astatine which anti-immigration person Paludan acceptable a transcript of the Quran alight.

The incidental sparked choler successful the Turkish capital, Ankara, wherever protesters took to the streets and burned the Swedish emblem extracurricular the Swedish embassy successful response.

Speaking Thursday, Çavuşoğlu said the Swedish authorities had “taken portion successful this transgression by allowing this vile act” to spell ahead, according to Anadolu.

The overseas curate described the incidental arsenic a “racist attack” that had thing to bash with state of thought, the bureau said.

Çavuşoğlu advised Sweden to “demine” its way to NATO rank oregon hazard ruining its accidental by “stepping connected those mines,” Anadolu reported.

Earlier this week, Ankara called for a February gathering betwixt Turkey, Sweden and Finland to beryllium postponed, according to Turkish authorities broadcaster TRT Haber, which cited unnamed diplomatic sources.

Finland is besides applying to articulation NATO, on with its Nordic neighbor, aft Moscow’s battle connected Ukraine sparked renewed information interest crossed the region.

Anadolu reported Thursday that the gathering astir Sweden and Finland’s NATO applications was postponed successful airy of the existent “unhealthy governmental environment.”

The 3 countries person met successful the past nether the “trilateral memorandum” to sermon Sweden and Finland’s NATO rank requests.

Ankara besides canceled Swedish Defense Minister Pål Jonson’s planned travel to Turkey successful the aftermath of the incident.

Sweden and Finland applied past twelvemonth to articulation NATO pursuing Russia’s penetration of Ukraine, but each 30 subordinate states, including Turkey, indispensable o.k. their bids.

Turkey has said Sweden successful peculiar indispensable archetypal instrumentality a clearer stance against what it sees arsenic terrorists, chiefly Kurdish militants and a radical it blames for a 2016 coup attempt.