President Erdogan calls for unconditional support from the alliance in its fight against the Kurdish-Syrian militia
Turkey will block NATO's plan for the defence of Baltic countries unless the alliance recognises a Kurdish group as "terrorists", Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned.
A NATO meeting on Tuesday, marking the alliance's 70th anniversary, was set to be a tense affair with Turkey at odds with other members over its purchase of Russian missiles and recent offensive in northern Syria, among other issues.
Speaking at a news conference in the capital, Ankara, before his departure for the British capital, Erdogan urged unconditional support of the alliance in the fight against the Kurdish People's Protection Unit (YPG), which Turkey views as a terrorist organisation.
"NATO needs to act in a proactive manner against threats posed by the terrorist organisations," Erdogan said. "It is inevitable that NATO is in need of readjusting itself against today's terrorist threats. We expect our allies to display strong cooperation with us against the threats we are facing."
Relations between Turkey and its NATO allies have been strained over a host of issues, ranging from Ankara's decision to procure Russian air defence systems to its policy on Syria.
Several NATO members also condemned Turkey's decision to launch an offensive into northeastern Syria against the YPG group.
Erdogan said he had spoken to Polish President
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