Turkey warned its citizens of possible racist attacks in Europe and the United States of America, and the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that “Turkish citizens who live in or travel to these areas should be careful and stay away from places where demonstrations are taking place.”
“The recent anti-Islamic and racist actions against Turkey by groups linked to terrorist organizations show a dangerous level of religious intolerance and hatred in Europe,” the ministry added in a statement.
The warning comes after the foreign ministries of Sweden, Norway and Denmark advised their citizens to avoid large gatherings in Turkey in light of the recent tensions.
It is noteworthy that the tensions between Turkey and some European countries, including Sweden, which hopes to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), were exacerbated by protests that Ankara considered anti-Islam or hostile to Turkey, including the far-right politician Rasmus Paludan, who burned a copy of the Holy Quran in front of the embassy. Turkey in Stockholm, threatening to do so on a weekly basis so that Sweden can join NATO. Ankara also summoned the Dutch ambassador there, after another far-right activist tore pages from the Holy Quran in The Hague.