Finland's foreign minister said on Tuesday a time-out of a few weeks was needed in Finland and Sweden's talks with Turkey on their application to join the NATO military alliance.
Turkey's president said on Monday that Sweden should not expect his country's support after a protest near the Turkish embassy in Stockholm at the weekend, which included the burning of a copy of the Koran.
"A time-out is needed before we return to the three-way talks and see where we are when the dust has settled after the current situation, so no conclusions should be drawn yet," Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told Reuters in a telephone interview.
"I think there will be a break for a couple of weeks."
Sweden and Finland applied last year to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization after Russia invaded of Ukraine, and now need the backing of all current NATO states to advance their application.
But Turkey has said Sweden in particular must take a clearer stance against what Ankara sees as terrorists: mainly Kurdish militants, and a group it blames for a 2016 coup attempt in Turkey.
Reuters
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