Germany hopes to normalize Turkey ties

BERLIN — Germany’s foreign minister expressed cautious optimism on Wednesday that Berlin and Ankara may begin to slowly reel diplomatic relations back to normal, following an escalation of tensions that culminated with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accusing Germany of “Nazi practices”.

Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said talks in Berlin with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, the first face-to-face official meeting since the diplomatic crisis began last week, were “good, honest and friendly, but also hard and contentious”.

Over the past week, German municipalities have canceled several events in which Turkish Cabinet ministers had planned to address rallies in Germany in support of a national referendum on con- stitutional reform that would give Erdogan more powers. Officials have cited issues of overcrowding and fire safety, among other things.

Germany’s federal government has expressed increasing irritation over Turkish officials using Germany as a campaign platform. About 1.4 million people of Turkish descent living in Germany are eligible to vote in the referendum.

Cavusoglu toned down his rhetoric after Wednesday’s meeting, saying only that it seemed Germany was allowing anti-Erdogan campaigners to express their opinions while preventing his supporters from doing so.

“We shared our views in a very sincere atmosphere. We expect to continue this dialogue,” he said.