(MENAFN) Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto has said that Russia may have been suspect for the public burning of Korans in Stockholm, Sweden last week. He also said that the stunt might have been arranged to disrupt the nation’s attempt to become a member of NATO.
On January 21, Rasmus Paludan, an anti-Islam protestor and head of a minor Danish far-right party, Stram Kurs (Hard Line), burned the Muslim holy book outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm. Ankara strongly remonstrated the action, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stating on Monday that Sweden might no longer depend on Türkiye’s support for its entry to NATO.
On Friday, Paludan set copies of the Koran on fire in front of a mosque, the Turkish Embassy, and the Russian Consulate in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Talking to Finnish TV channel Yle on Saturday, Haavisto suggested the idea that Russia might be behind this action. “This matter is under investigation. Various ties in the activist’s circle have been uncovered,” Haavisto added. “I cannot say with certainty … But we have been shown a concept of how to act in order to inflict maximum damage [to the NATO membership bid].”
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