Turkey denies sexist snub as it blames EU for ‘sofagate’

TURKEY has insisted the EU is to blame for seating arrangements that left the European Commission chief without a chair during a high-profile meeting with its president.

The government was accused of sexist behaviour towards Ursula von der Leyen, the first female president of the commission, when her European Council counterpart, Charles Michel, was granted a seat next to President Erdogan and she was relegated to a nearby sofa.

Ms Von der Leyen, 62, should have been treated the same as Mr Michel, according to her spokesman, who said the incident had “sharpened her focus” when it comes to championing women’s rights.

Mevlut Cavusoglu, the Turkish foreign minister, hit back at claims that socalled sofagate was the result of misogyny, claiming: “The seating arrangements were made in line with the EU suggestion. Period.” Referring to a statement by Mr Michel on Facebook, Mr Cavusoglu added: “We would not be revealing this fact had accusations not been made against Turkey.”

The Facebook post squarely pins the blame on Turkey. “Despite a clear desire to do the right thing, the strict interpretation of the protocol rules by the Turkish authorities gave rise to a distressing situation: the different – even inferior – treatment accorded to the president,” Mr Michel, 45, wrote.

The former Belgian prime minister added he was “saddened” by suggestions that he was indifferent to the “protocol misstep”, despite video footage showing him taking his place next to President Erdogan with no hesitation.

Jean-claude Juncker, Ms Von der Leyen’s predecessor, also waded in, telling the website Politico Europe that when he was in the job “from a protocol point of view, the president of the council is No 1, and the president of the commission is No 2” when abroad.

“Normally I had a chair next to the chair of the president of the council, but sometimes it happened that I was sitting on a sofa,” he said, insisting “there are more important controversies”.