Neither terrorism nor organized crime recognizes any national borders, says Minister of Justice Gunnar Strömmer (M) at a press conference in Ankara.
He and Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard (M) have met with Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya.
The meeting – which Fidan described as "fruitful" – marks the starting point for the Security Compact dialogue format that Sweden and Turkey agreed on at the NATO summit in Vilnius 2023. The initiative is ongoing and the next meeting will take place in Sweden.
Faster pace
Sharing more information and doing so at a faster pace is "a completely central issue", according to Strömmer.
It is both important for getting to the gang leaders who are evading Swedish justice in Turkey, and for us to be able to get to, for example, organized crime in Sweden that uses the profits from crime to finance various terrorist groups, he says to TT.
"Combating international terrorism and organized crime is highly prioritized by the government. It is obvious that our two countries have much to gain from closer cooperation in these areas, both politically and between our authorities", says Malmer Stenergard in a written comment to TT.
As recently as Tuesday, reports emerged that a Swedish gang member had been murdered in Istanbul and that a Swedish internationally wanted man had been arrested in Bodrum.
A more intense cooperation requires both that our authorities do more and that Turkish authorities do more. It's about working closely together in concrete cases to get to both terrorists and individuals active in criminal networks, says Strömmer.
Financing terror
Otherwise, the discussion touched on Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, the development in Syria, and the situation in Gaza.
Turkey emphasized to the Swedish ministers the importance of countries like Sweden contributing to combating the terrorist-stamped PKK.
We have confirmed that we also have an interest in contributing to that work and, for example, directing the spotlight towards organized crime that in some cases uses the profits to finance terrorist activities in PKK or other terrorist organizations, says Strömmer.
