Over 92% say ‘no’ to Türkiye approving Sweden’s NATO bid: Twitter survey

ANKARA (AA) – In a Twitter survey conducted by Turkish news agency Anadolu, 92.5% of respondents said ‘no’ to Türkiye approving Sweden’s bid to join NATO.

A total of 50,155 people responded to the 24-hour survey asking: “Do you think Türkiye should support Sweden’s bid to join NATO?” and many also shared their views in the comments section.

This survey came on the heels of the reprehensible incident of the burning of a copy of the Quran.

Türkiye condemned Rasmus Paludan, leader of the Danish far-right party Stram Kurs (Hard Line), who was given “permission” to carry out the heinous act outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm.

In response to Sweden’s permission for the act, Ankara canceled the Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson’s visit to Türkiye.

Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said he was concerned the demonstration would risk further delaying Türkiye’s ratification of Sweden’s NATO bid.

However, he added that it would be “very inappropriate” for him to call for a person not to be allowed to carry out a demonstration.

Türkiye also condemned Sweden for allowing a demonstration by the supporters of the PKK Kurdish nationalist group in the capital Stockholm.

Last week, Türkiye called on Sweden to take steps against “terror” groups after a demonstration in Stockholm, where supporters of the PKK hung an effigy by the feet, representing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Sweden and Finland formally applied to join NATO last May, abandoning decades of military non-alignment, a decision spurred by Russia’s war on Ukraine.

However, Türkiye voiced objections, accusing the two countries of tolerating and even supporting groups that it considers to be involved in “terrorism” — the PKK and the Gulen Movement.