Since Turkey is the subject of numerous European sanctions following its intervention in Syria, Libya and its deployment of forces in the Eastern Mediterranean against Greece and Cyprus, President Erdogan knew that Finland's and Sweden would be, for him, a formidable means of pressure to attenuate these sanctions, and to force the hand of the two Scandinavian countries in their support for the Kurdish movements. By standing firm on his opposition to the accession of the two countries to the Atlantic Alliance, RT Erdogan has indeed achieved his ends, and if the official press releases welcome the lifting of Ankara's veto for these accessions, opening the way to an accelerated process of accession in order to respond to the growing Russian threat, Stockholm and Helsinki, but also the Americans very probably, have had to give in to many Turkish demands, some of which will not go without causing certain problems in their implementation implemented.
The Turkish demands covered several points, all of which were accepted by the Swedes and Finns during the negotiations held on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Madrid. First of all, Ankara demanded the end of the Swedish embargo on the delivery of armament systems to Turkey, and that the two Scandinavian countries begin technological defense cooperation with Turkish industry. This request is significant, since in certain areas, it makes it possible to circumvent the sanctions implemented by other European countries which handicap the industrial and technological effort of defense engaged by RT Erdogan for fifteen years. This is particularly the case for naval and submarine propulsion technologies, as well as for certain composite materials and high-tech alloys which are lacking in Turkey for the pursuit of certain programs, such as the Altay tank.
Secondly, Sweden and Finland undertake to no longer support the Kurdish political movements of the YPG, and to pursue a firm policy against the Kurdish terrorist organizations which threaten Turkey, in particular the PKK. However, Helsinki and especially Stockholm had taken benevolent positions vis-à-vis the Kurdish diaspora, notably by welcoming leaders of the YPG and the Peshmergas. This point will be particularly critical in Sweden, since the government of Magdalena Andersson only resisted a vote of no confidence a few weeks ago thanks to the support of MP Amineh Kakabaveh of Kurdish origin and herself a former Peshmerga, the latter having made clear that this political support was conditional on Swedish national support for the Kurdish cause. In addition, Ankara obtained from Stockholm and Helsinki the guarantee that the two Scandinavian countries would respond favorably to Turkish extradition requests concerning possible leaders of terrorist movements, which will not go without causing significant waves of protest. in both countries, both politically and socially.
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