Those who support a terrorist organization that targets a NATO ally should not be a part of the security bloc, Turkey's Defense Ministry said Tuesday.
In a briefing, the ministry underlined that Turkey continues to share the values and responsibilities of NATO and remains at the center of the alliance's security as its second-largest army.
Noting that NATO's enlargement is meaningful and important to the extent that Turkey's sensitivities are respected, the ministry underlined that NATO is a security organization and one of the biggest issues it must tackle is global terrorism. "Supporting a terrorist organization that attacks an alliance member country is against the spirit of alliance. Those who give this support should not have a place in NATO," the ministry statement read.
It was stressed that Turkey always favors solving problems through dialogue in the hopes of achieving regional and world peace, adding that the country continues to do its best to establish global and regional security and stability.
The statement noted that Defense Minister Hulusi Akar will attend the NATO defense ministers meeting in Brussels on June 15-16 and will attend the NATO heads of state and government summit in Madrid on June 29-30, accompanying President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Pointing to the importance of the stability, political unity and territorial integrity of the countries in the Balkans and the Black Sea, the ministry said that Turkey wants all Balkan countries, particularly Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina, to maintain their existence in unity and with integrity.
The ministry underlined that Turkey has continued to successfully fulfill all the duties and missions it has undertaken since it joined NATO in 1952. "Turkey will continue to be an active and constructive member of NATO. The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) will continue to contribute to world peace in many geographies from Libya to Kosovo, from Azerbaijan to Bosnia-Herzegovina, from Qatar to Somalia, within the scope of United Nations, NATO, European Union and OSCE missions and bilateral agreements," the ministry noted.
Sweden and Finland applied to join the Western defense alliance last month in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but their bids have faced resistance from Turkey, which has accused them of supporting terrorist groups.
While the two Nordic countries have said talks would continue to resolve the dispute, President Erdoğan said last week that Ankara had not received any responses to its demands, including stopping support for groups Turkey considers terrorists, lifting arms embargoes on Ankara and extraditing suspects it seeks.
Any bid to join NATO requires backing from each of its 30 members. Turkey, which has been a NATO ally for over 70 years, has said it will not change its view unless the Nordic countries take "concrete steps" about its concerns.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said during a visit to Washington that he would convene senior officials from Finland, Sweden and Turkey in Brussels in the coming days to discuss the issue. NATO leaders will convene on June 29-30 in Madrid.
Earlier, Erdoğan said NATO was not an organization that could provide protection from terror, citing demonstrations and events organized by the PKK terrorist group in allied countries like France, Germany, the Netherlands and Greece, whose envoy to Ankara was summoned over the issue on Friday.
The president said Ankara would not "fall for the same mistake" while PKK members "roam free" in Finland and Sweden. The PKK is designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and European Union.