Turkey's Erdogan Says No Support For Sweden Bid After Stockholm Protest

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stated that his gov't will not offer support for Sweden's bid to join NATO following a protest in Stockholm over the weekend that saw a Swedish activist burn a copy of the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy. Speaking on 23 Jan, Erdogan said “If you [Sweden] cannot show this respect, then sorry but you will not see any support from us on the NATO issue,...Don’t expect such support from us,"

• Despite support from all other NATO members, Turkey remains a holdout after Stockholm refused to extradite individuals of Kurdish origin that Ankara has designated as terrorists. Separate pro-Kurdish protests in Sweden also came under fire from Erdogan, stating “So you [Sweden] will let terror organizations run wild and then expect our support for getting into NATO. That’s not happening,”
• The US and other NATO allies remain strongly in favour of Sweden's accession, however these countries have so far proved incapable of convincing Erdogan's gov't to shift its stance.
• Finland has stated previously that its accession will happen in tandem with Sweden, meaning its joining NATO will also be on hold while Sweden attempts to repair relations with Turkey.