Sweden PM says 'foreign actors' exploiting protests

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Tuesday denounced activists who burned the Quran and hanged an effigy of Turkey’s president in Stockholm as “useful idiots” for foreign powers who want to inflict harm on the Scandinavian country as it seeks to join NATO.

“We have seen how foreign actors, even state actors, have used these manifestations to inflame the situation in a way that is directly harmful to Swedish security,” Kristersson told reporters in Stockholm, without naming any countries.

The prime minister gathered leaders of Sweden’s parliamentary parties to discuss the national security situation amid rising tensions with Turkey and a wave of anti-Swedish protests in other Muslim countries. The protests came in reaction to a series of small demonstrations this month in Stockholm targeting Turkey and its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Tuesday called activists who burned the Koran and hung an effigy of the Turkish president in Stockholm "useful idiots" for foreign powers who want to harm the Scandinavian country on its path to accession NATO.

"We have seen how foreign actors, even state actors, have used these manifestations to inflame the situation in a way that is directly harmful to Swedish security," Kristersson told reporters in Stockholm, without naming any countries.

The prime minister gathered leaders of Sweden's parliamentary parties to discuss the national security situation amid rising tensions with Turkey and a wave of anti-Swedish protests in other Muslim countries. The protests were a response to a series of smaller demonstrations this month in Stockholm directed against Turkey and its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

During a protest, an effigy of Erdogan was hung from a lamppost outside Stockholm City Hall. Ankara reacted angrily to the protests, warning that Sweden could not count on its support for joining NATO. Swedish government officials distanced themselves from the protests, stressing that they were protected by freedom of speech.

"The groups and individuals who have carried out this kind of action become useful idiots in this security situation for forces that want to harm Sweden," Kristersson said.

He said his center-right government was trying to calm the situation through diplomatic channels and that he had spoken by phone with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Sweden and neighboring Finland gave up their decades-long non-alignment and applied to join NATO after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. All members of NATO except Turkey and Hungary have ratified their accession, but unanimity is required.