AIRLINK 180.10 Increased By ▲ 3.78 (2.14%)
BOP 13.09 Decreased By ▼ -0.36 (-2.68%)
CNERGY 7.48 Decreased By ▼ -0.01 (-0.13%)
FCCL 45.18 Decreased By ▼ -0.11 (-0.24%)
FFL 16.06 Increased By ▲ 0.84 (5.52%)
FLYNG 27.43 Increased By ▲ 0.43 (1.59%)
HUBC 133.24 Increased By ▲ 0.14 (0.11%)
HUMNL 13.02 Increased By ▲ 0.01 (0.08%)
KEL 4.45 No Change ▼ 0.00 (0%)
KOSM 5.97 Increased By ▲ 0.01 (0.17%)
MLCF 58.81 Increased By ▲ 0.78 (1.34%)
OGDC 218.59 Increased By ▲ 0.31 (0.14%)
PACE 5.87 No Change ▼ 0.00 (0%)
PAEL 42.62 Increased By ▲ 1.00 (2.4%)
PIAHCLA 16.50 Increased By ▲ 0.14 (0.86%)
PIBTL 9.92 Increased By ▲ 0.50 (5.31%)
POWER 11.95 Increased By ▲ 0.07 (0.59%)
PPL 183.08 Decreased By ▼ -1.54 (-0.83%)
PRL 35.33 Increased By ▲ 0.15 (0.43%)
PTC 24.34 Increased By ▲ 0.64 (2.7%)
SEARL 95.82 Increased By ▲ 1.29 (1.36%)
SILK 1.15 Decreased By ▼ -0.02 (-1.71%)
SSGC 37.31 Increased By ▲ 0.11 (0.3%)
SYM 16.08 Decreased By ▼ -0.10 (-0.62%)
TELE 7.88 Increased By ▲ 0.01 (0.13%)
TPLP 10.84 Increased By ▲ 0.10 (0.93%)
TRG 60.94 Decreased By ▼ -0.40 (-0.65%)
WAVESAPP 10.79 Increased By ▲ 0.02 (0.19%)
WTL 1.33 Decreased By ▼ -0.01 (-0.75%)
YOUW 3.77 Increased By ▲ 0.01 (0.27%)
BR100 12,215 Decreased By -29.5 (-0.24%)
BR30 37,439 Increased By 64.4 (0.17%)
KSE100 115,536 Increased By 441.9 (0.38%)
KSE30 35,658 Increased By 47 (0.13%)

ISTANBUL: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he expected NATO’s next secretary general to prioritise Turkey’s terror-related concerns, as he met Friday with the leading candidate for the position.

Erdogan said fight against terror was one of the leading topics during his discussions with outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who was in Istanbul to rally Turkey’s support for his candidacy.

“We told him that in accordance with the alliance spirit, no terror organisation, especially the PKK and its affiliates should be tolerated,” Erdogan told reporters, alongside Rutte.

The PKK, listed as a terror group by Turkey and its Western allies, has waged a decades-long insurgency for greater autonomy for the Kurdish minority in the southeast of the country.

Erdogan submits Sweden NATO bid to Turkish parliament

In addition, Erdogan said it is “imperative for the new secretary general to make intense efforts to remove sanctions, restrictions and obstacles in defence industry area among the allies”.

Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis is also a candidate for the NATO post, and Erdogan said he conveyed Turkey’s requests to him during a phone call last week.

Erdogan did not reveal Turkey’s choice between the two men, but said the decision would be based on “reason”, even as he smilingly wished Rutte success on his “new journey”.

Rutte is the frontrunner to replace Norwegian Jens Stoltenberg at the helm of the alliance after the United States, Britain and Germany expressed their support for his candidacy.

Hungary, however, said the country would not support Rutte, who has previously voiced concern about receding democratic standards under Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Rutte is also facing scepticism over the Netherland’s failure to hit NATO’s defence spending targets over the past decade.

Comments

Comments are closed.