(MENAFN) Turkey will not agree on Finland and Sweden's attempts to become a member of NATO until they correctly speak about Ankara's worries over their alleged support for terrorist groups, Leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated, vowing not to do “past mistakes” again.

Erdogan notified journalists on coming back from a journey to Azerbaijan, in line with state media information “For as long as Tayyip Erdogan is the head of the Republic of Turkey, we definitely cannot say 'yes' to countries which support terrorism entering NATO.”

Delegations from Sweden and Finland planned a meeting with their Turkish complements in Ankara for discussions last week, after the Nordic nations' joint application to enroll the US-led military alliance. Their entrance needs the common approval of all 30 member states, and Turkey has intimidated to stop the process if both nations attack groups it considers activists.

Erdogan stated regarding the discussions’ consequences up to now “They are not honest or sincere,” noting “They don’t take necessary steps, they are still allowing the terrorists to freely walk in the streets of Stockholm and provide security to them with their police.”

He went on to say “We cannot repeat the same mistake we made in the past towards these countries that shelter and feed these terrorists,” mentioning a separate long-running argument with Athens over Cyprus, remembering how in 1980 Ankara “allowed Greece to return” following its partial departure from NATO.

MENAFN30052022000045012476ID1104292354