UAE strongly condemns burning of Holy Quran in Sweden

The UAE has strongly condemned the burning of a copy of the Holy Quran in front of the Republic of Türkiye Embassy in Sweden, by an extremist.

In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC) affirmed the UAE's rejection of all practices aimed at destabilising security and stability in contravention of human and moral values and principles.

The ministry renewed its enduring call to renounce hate speech and violence and underscored the need to respect religious symbols and avoid inciting hatred by insulting religions. Furthermore, the ministry reiterated the need to spread the values of tolerance and coexistence.

Meanwhile, Turkey on Saturday cancelled a planned visit by Sweden’s defence minister in response to anti-Turkish protests that increased tension between the two countries as Sweden seeks Turkey's approval to join Nato.

A far-right activist from Denmark received permission from police to stage a protest outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm where he burned a copy of the Holy Quran.

A separate pro-Kurdish demonstration was held later on Saturday in the Swedish capital.

Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said the scheduled Jan. 27 visit by his Swedish counterpart Pål Jonson no longer held "any importance or point,” because Sweden continued to allow "disgusting” demonstrations against Turkey.

Jonson tweeted that he had met Akar on Friday in Ramstein, Germany, where they "agreed to postpone” the meeting in Ankara.

"Relations with Turkey are very important for Sweden and we look forward to continuing the dialogue on common security and defense issues at a later date,” he wrote.

WAM / Agencies