ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Swedish foreign minister on Friday received a delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) representation in the country, discussing the concerns of the Kurdish community in Sweden following the Nordic country’s recent agreement with Turkey, according to a statement from the KRG representation.
Sweden and Finland agreed on Tuesday to accept most of Turkey’s demands in return of its support for the Nordic countries’ NATO membership, including the extradition of dozens of Kurds wanted by Ankara for terror charges.
The agreement has concerned many Swedish Kurds. However, the Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde said on Wednesday that they will not extradite anyone unless Turkey proves that these people are involved in terror activities. She also said that “There is no reason at all for Kurds to believe that their human rights or democratic rights would be curtailed.”
Linde received Shorsh Kadir, KRG representative to Sweden, and his delegation at the ministry’s building on Friday.
“Timely meeting with Sweden's Minister for Foreign Affairs @AnnLinde. We exchanged views on issues of common interest with emphasis on @Kurdistan-Sweden relations and the need to address the concerns of the Kurdish community about recent media reporting on Sweden’s NATO membership,” said Kadir in a tweet.
Sweden and the KRG enjoy good relations. Linde visited the Kurdistan Region in November and met with Kurdish leaders.
Linde said in a tweet on Friday that she and Kadir had a “good conversation” about “the condition of Kurds in Sweden and Sweden’s continued engagement in the Kurdistan Region in Iraq.”
Sweden is a member of the US-led global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) which emerged in Iraqi in 2014 but was territorially defeated in the country three years later.
According to a statement from Kadir’s office, he conveyed “the concerns of Kurdish diaspora” to the minister regarding the reports about Sweden’s policy on Kurds after its bid to enter NATO.
“It was stressed that the Swedish government should answer these questions and provide necessary explanations to the Kurdish diaspora in Sweden,” it added, referring to questions Kurdish diaspora in Sweden have about their future and their rights as Turkey has requested from Sweden the extradition of 73 people wanted by Ankara for links to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and its alleged extensions as well as the Gulen movement which is accused of orchestrating 2016 failed coup attempt against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Erdogan said on Friday that Sweden has already extradited 3-4 “terrorists” but “this is not enough.”
Neither the KRG statement nor tweets by Linde and Kadir mentioned Turkey at all.
Some 100,000 Kurds live in Sweden, according to unofficial figures.
