OUR Sweden he accused her Türkiye that in the negotiations on the approval of its membership in NATO puts forward demands that cannot be met.

The Swedish government hoped it would join NATO last month. Finland. The two countries broke a long-standing policy of neutrality by changing the security map in Europe after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine when they applied to join the bloc.

Tayyip Erdogan has insisted that Sweden first hand over about 120 people associated with the Kurdish insurgency before his country ratifies its NATO membership, which is popular with his domestic audience. Erdogan is the top favorite for Sunday’s presidential election after facing a major test in the first round earlier this month.

A senior Swedish official with knowledge of the situation said that Stockholm had not received a list of names from Turkey and did not know who the people were, making it impossible to comply with Erdogan’s demands. The official said that the agreement between Turkey, Finland and Sweden at the request of NATO does not include a specific number of Kurdish activists.

According to NATO rules, any member country can block the entry of new members. If Erdogan wins on Sunday, as many political analysts expect, he may not push for tough concessions from the Swedish government, said Alper Choskun, former director general of international security at the Turkish Foreign Ministry and now a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for Foreign Affairs. Peace in Washington.