This report was written by Brussels-based journalist Maria Psara for the internet news service, Euronews, and published on the site’s Greek language page on June 30, 2022, following the June 28 trilateral security agreement that was agreed to by Finland, Sweden, and Turkiye (as Turkey is now called). With security assurances in place regarding the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), considered a terrorist organization by Turkiye as well as several other countries, NATO’s thorn-in-the-side member withdrew its objection to the two northern European countries joining the alliance.

Psara’s article follows:

That which many are celebrating is causing fear in the Kurdish community. Sweden and Finland will be joining the NATO alliance.

But the agreement was achieved only when Turkiye lifted its veto after the signing of a memorandum of understanding that concerns the Kurds.

They [i.e., the Kurds] believe that the two Scandinavian states have granted too much to Ankara.

But speaking to Euronews’ Efi Koutsokosta, the Finnish Foreign Minister, Pekka Haavisto, was reassuring:

“We are not changing our legislation in Finland. Sweden is not changing its legislation. We agree about some cooperation between our authorities [translator note: understood to mean ‘guiding legislative principles’] and so on, but we are following our own laws concerning human rights, arms exports, etc. And I don’t think that this type of reinforced cooperation between our authorities is something bad.”

The memorandum commits the two countries to deal with the pending extradition requests of Turkiye for those suspected of terrorism, which refers to Kurdish activists.

Finland says there are no pending cases.

And NATO allies report, they are sure.

“Sweden and Finland are reliable democratic partners who have been beacons as far as human rights and the rule of law are concerned. So I have complete confidence that they will not sacrifice the basic principles, which they so adamantly defended in past years. I think that they have found formulations and decisions where they continue to preserve the position of their principles, but they allow us to observe that which Turkiye was requesting,” said Gabrielius Landsbergis, Foreign Minister of Lithuania.

Within the memorandum, Stockholm and Helsinki confirmed that the Kurdish PKK is a prohibited organization and also that “they will not provide support” to the groups that are active in Syria.

They also say that there exists no national weapons embargo that concerns sales to Turkey.