Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Turkey row with Germany, Netherlands gains steam
ANKARA, Turkey — German Chancellor Angela Merkel backed the Netherlands in its diplomatic fight with Turkey on Monday as NATO’s chief called for alliance members to respect each other, and the European Union urged Turkey to calm down.
The argument is over the Netherlands’ refusal to allow Turkish officials to campaign there to drum up support among Turks who are eligible to vote in an April 16 referendum that would greatly expand the powers of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Erdogan’s strong reaction to scenes of Dutch police repelling Turkish protesters is fueling nationalism back home and bolstering his image as a protector of Turkish people against a hostile world.
On Monday, Turkey’s foreign ministry formally protested the treatment of a Turkish minister who was escorted out of the Netherlands after trying to attend a weekend referendum rally. The ministry also objected to what it called a “disproportionate” use of force against demonstrators at a protest afterward.
Erdogan later said that the two cabinet ministers would apply to the European human rights court over their treatment in the Netherlands.
Turkey had a similar dispute with Germany last week, but the fight with the Netherlands comes as that country prepares for its own election Wednesday pitting Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s right-wing PVV Party against far-right, anti-Islam populist Geert Wilders’ party. Wilders had called on the Dutch government to bar Turkish ministers from the Netherlands until after the election. Rutte, who did not want to be seen backing down to Turkish threats, enraged Ankara by refusing to let Turkey’s foreign minister land in the Netherlands on Saturday and denying the country’s family and social policies minister access to the Turkish Consulate in downtown Rotterdam.
Erdogan vowed to retaliate against the Netherlands after claiming that “Nazism is alive in the West.”
Merkel, speaking at a news conference in Munich on Monday, pledged her “full support and solidarity” to the Dutch, saying the Nazi gibes were “completely unacceptable.”
Erdogan responded angrily to Merkel’s support for the Netherlands. “Shame on you!” he exclaimed during an interview with A Haber television on Monday.
He renewed accusations that Germany supported “terrorists” battling Turkey and that it backed the ‘no’ campaign in the Turkish referendum, arguing that Berlin did not want to see a strong Turkey emerge.
“Some of the European Union countries — let’s not put all of them in the same sack — unfortunately cannot stomach Turkey’s rise,” Erdogan said. “Sadly, Germany tops the list. Germany supports terror in a cruel way.”
He went on to advise Turks living in Europe not to vote for parties that he described as “enemies of Turkey.”
The European Union called on Turkey to “refrain from excessive statements and actions that risk further exacerbating the situation.” EU spokesman Margaritis Schinas added that it was essential to avoid further escalation and find ways to calm the situation.