After the anger over a doll hung in Stockholm that resembled Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the spokesman for the Turkish President has warned Sweden against a repeat of similar protests.
Should such incidents occur again, it would “slow down” the process of Sweden’s NATO accession, said Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman for President Erdogan, in Istanbul today. The protest action also harms the public image of Sweden.
But Kalin also emphasized with regard to Sweden’s NATO accession: “We believe in this process and want to make progress.” Turkey has been blocking Sweden’s admission to NATO for months.
Doll suspended by the legs
Most recently, a protest action in Stockholm caused a new dispute: A doll resembling Erdogan was hung by its feet near Stockholm City Hall, as pictures showed. Behind it were apparently activists from a Swedish organization that describes itself as “a network for solidarity and exchange with the revolutionary movement throughout Kurdistan”. The Turkish government then summoned the Swedish ambassador, for example. Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson condemned the action.
