Ankara summoned the Danish ambassador after a protester burned the Koran to protest against Turkey’s failure to accept Sweden and Finland’s accession to NATO.
“Danish Ambassador to Ankara Danny Annan was summoned to the Turkish Foreign Ministry, following Copenhagen’s attack on the Koran on January 27,” Turkish diplomatic sources said. “Turkey condemns this obvious provocative, hateful act and Denmark’s attitude as unacceptable.”
The move comes after anti-Muslim activist Rasmus Paludan, a citizen of Sweden and Denmark, on January 27 burned a copy of the Koran near a mosque in Copenhagen, then did the same in front of the ambassador. Turkish restaurant in the city.
The Koran is the most important religious text of Islam. Most Turks are Muslim.
Sheet The evening paper According to a report from Sweden, Paludan plans to protest outside the Turkish embassy in Copenhagen every Friday until Ankara approves Stockholm’s accession to NATO.
Danish Ambassador to Turkey Danny Annan. Photo: Anadolu Agency.
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen confirmed that Ambassador Annan was summoned by Ankara. He said Copenhagen “has a good relationship with Ankara and the incident has not made any difference”.
“Our job is to explain to Turkey the conditions in open democracy in Denmark and understand that there are differences between Denmark’s views, as a nation, and as individuals.” , Mr. Rasmussen said.
Earlier, Swedish police also allowed Paludan to organize a protest in Stockholm on January 21 and he burned a copy of the Koran in front of the Turkish embassy. Ankara responded by canceling the visit of Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson and stopping negotiations with Stockholm and Helsinki on joining NATO.
The US and French ambassadors to Ankara warned citizens of the risk of retaliatory attacks in Turkey.
Far-right activist Rasmus Paludan holds a megaphone during a speech in front of a mosque in Noerrebro, Copenhagen, Denmark, January 27. Photo: Reuters
Sweden and Finland in May 2022 ended decades of military non-alignment and applied to join NATO. To become a member of the bloc, the two countries must have their applications approved by the parliaments of all 30 NATO member states.
Turkey is protesting, as the two Nordic countries have not yet responded to their demands, mainly regarding the Kurdish militia that Ankara considers “terrorists” and responsible for the coup plot in 2015. 2016. Meanwhile, Hungary is expected to approve Sweden and Finland’s accession to NATO in February.
Like Tam (Theo AFP, Reuters, Anadolu Agency)