Hostility towards the Muslim holy book, the Quran, is a sign of ignorance, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Wednesday.

Speaking at the final of public broadcaster TRT's Quran Recitation Competition in Istanbul, Erdoğan said that "some European countries are trying to gain political profits by being hostile to Islam and Muslims."

There are people who demonstrate this hostility by burning the Quran, Erdoğan said, adding "the vandalism displayed by these hostile people is a sign of their ignorance."

"It is impossible for anyone who reads the Quran once to harbor enmity towards this blessed book," he said.

"Of course, we will not tolerate any hostility against the holy book, but we will never forget that the main thing is to read, understand and live by the Quran."

Erdoğan earlier in the day said it is worrying to see that racist parties have reached a level of support that can make them government partners or propel them to take power in Europe.

"It is sad and worrying that racist parties have been receiving a level of support that would make them government partners or (allow them to) come to power alone in European elections," he said.

On April 14, Rasmus Paludan, the leader of the far-right Stram Kurs (Hard Line) group, burned a copy of the Muslim holy book in Sweden's southern city of Linkoping. He also threatened to burn copies of the Quran during further rallies.

"In the holy month of Ramadan, we once again condemn in the strongest possible terms the attacks and provocations against Islam, Muslims, the Quran and places of worship in different parts of the world," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement last week.

"The vile attacks on our holy book, the Quran, in Sweden have shown that the lessons of the past have not been learned, that there is still hesitancy to prevent Islamophobic and racist provocative acts, and that hate crimes are openly and overtly tolerated under the guise of freedom of expression," it added.

It underlined that Turkey will keep fighting against the threat posed by the Islamophobic and racist mentality.

Ankara calls on all countries and international organizations to take the necessary measures against Islamophobia and racism, it added.

Turkish officials have criticized their Western counterparts for remaining indifferent to anti-Muslim sentiment and fueling the ideology, while experts believe Turkey can lead the fight against it. Turkey has continuously called on world leaders to take action to stop the demonization of Muslims and has been taking action to tackle the growing problem.

Erdoğan has frequently said that Western countries insist on not taking measures against growing anti-Islam sentiment. The president has also called on Turkish institutions to take action on issues related to Muslims and Turks in these countries. Some European countries, particularly France, have embraced a hostile stance against Muslims in recent years.