Turkey has condemned a decision by Swedish authorities to approve a brief demonstration in which the Koran was burned outside a mosque in Stockholm on Wednesday. The move could threaten Sweden’s bid to join NATO ahead of the alliance’s key summit in July.
One person participated in the plan to burn the Holy Quran, and the photos show that he was the only person apart from his translator who participated in the demonstration which coincided with the first day of Eid al-Adha, which is the most important for Muslims.
The decision to allow the demonstration was made in accordance with the right to freedom of expression, Swedish police said, adding that the demonstration did not pose an immediate security threat.
But allowing a protest like this has provoked Islamic countries, especially Turkey, which is a NATO member country that opposes Sweden’s offer. Sweden and neighboring Finland have both formally applied to join the bloc after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine.
Turkey’s foreign minister condemned the demonstration on Wednesday, calling it an “ugly act”.
“It is unacceptable to allow these acts against Islam under the pretext of freedom of speech. To turn a blind eye to the horrible acts is to be complicit in the matter,” Hakan Fidan said in a statement.
Turkey’s government communications director Fahrettin Altun wrote on Twitter: “We are sick and tired of Islamophobia and the continuation of incidents of hatred towards our religion on the part of European authorities, especially Sweden.”
“Those who want to be our NATO allies, cannot afford the destructive practices of terrorism, Islamophobia and hatred,” he said.
NATO officials are hoping to avoid the embarrassment of seeing the alliance miss its own goal of having Sweden join the alliance on July 11 – the date of the next official summit in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius. Officials fear that an absence at this time will send a humiliating and dangerous message to the alliance.
Turkey – a strategically important member of NATO due to its geographical location in the Middle East and Europe, and being the second largest power in the alliance – has proved the biggest challenge to Sweden’s accession to NATO.
Earlier this year, Turkish-Swedish relations suffered a major blow after a rally in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm, during which an anti-immigration politician threw a copy of the Koran.
The incident caused outrage in the Turkish capital, Ankara, as protesters gathered in the streets and burned the Swedish flag in front of the Swedish embassy, which was a response.
But the decision to allow the Koran-burning demonstration may further damage Sweden-Turkey relations and destroy the country’s hopes of joining NATO.
