First results of the NATO Summit

The positive reactions to the Turkish blockade of Sweden‘s and Finland’s membership applications at the NATO summit in Madrid give cause for great concern. The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) expects that the Scandinavian countries will introduce more repressive measures, especially against the Kurdish population, in order to please Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “The Turkish blackmail tactics have obviously worked once again – with the support of the German government, no doubt,” explained Dr. Kamal Sido, the STP’s Middle East Correspondent. “Now, politically persecuted people who fled from Erdogan’s dictatorship to supposedly safe countries are once again living in fear of being deported.” This affects Kurdish and Turkish refugees, in particular members of the Gülen movement.

“Erdogan is already jubilating. As of now, it is not yet entirely clear what exactly the dirty deal is all about. Support for the transnational persecution of dissidents is certainly part of it. Whether Turkey will also be granted receive support for a renewed attack on northern Syria will become apparent in the coming weeks,” Sido said. “What is clear is that – against the backdrop of Russia’s attack on Ukraine – Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership comes at the expense of the human rights of persecuted minorities.” On social media, there are rumors that the security agencies of the two countries might already be preparing deportation lists.