Türkiye summons Swedish ambassador over insulting content on state TV
The Foreign Ministry headquarters in Türkiye's capital Ankara in this undated file photo. (AA File Photo)


The Foreign Ministry summoned Sweden's ambassador to Ankara on Wednesday over anti-Türkiye content published on the country's public broadcaster.

Impertinence, ugly remarks and visuals on Swedish state TV against Türkiye and its president are unacceptable, the ministry told Ambassador Staffan Herrström, adding that such content cannot be evaluated under the scope of freedom of the press or expression.

The incident comes as Justice Ministry officials from Türkiye and Sweden meet in Ankara for two-day talks to discuss the technical talks on the expatriation of terrorists under a trilateral deal that will enable the Nordic country to join NATO.

The two delegations discussed Ankara's extradition requests for terrorists, including those from the PKK terrorist group and the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ).

Sweden and Finland formally applied to join NATO in June, a decision spurred by Russia's war on Ukraine.

However, Türkiye voiced objections to the membership bids, criticizing the countries for tolerating and even supporting terrorist groups.

A trilateral memorandum at the NATO Madrid summit signed among the countries in June stipulates that Finland and Sweden will not provide support to the PKK's Syrian offshoots the YPG and PYD or to the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) – the group behind the 2016 defeated coup in Türkiye.

Sweden and Finland agreed earlier this summer to assure Türkiye of their support against security risks.

Among Türkiye’s demands were the repatriation of some suspects and Sweden lifting its arms embargo.

Sweden said last week that it is ready to supply weapons to Türkiye as part of its bid to join NATO.