EU,
NATO plead for calm as feud with Turkey escalates
The
furor appears to have pushed the already tense relations between
Europe and Ankara to the brink.
By DAVID M.
HERSZENHORN 3/13/17, 6:49 PM CET Updated 3/14/17, 7:50 AM CET
Senior EU and NATO
officials pleaded for restraint Monday as a nasty political feud
between Ankara and European capitals over Turkey’s upcoming
constitutional referendum continued to escalate.
All sides were
seething after a weekend in which the Netherlands barred Turkish
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu from entering the country to
attend a rally in Rotterdam in support of President Recep Tayyip
Erdoğan’s constitutional changes, which European experts have said
could potentially undermine the country’s rule of law. Erdoğan, in
turn, responded by comparing Dutch leaders to Nazis, echoing a
comment he made about the German government last week.
The furor seemed to
push the already tense relations between Europe and Ankara to the
brink, raising concern that a fragile deal to stem the flow of
migrants to Europe might fall apart. And it prompted senior leaders,
including NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, to call on Turkey
and its European allies to focus on the more important goals they
share including crucial military cooperation in the fight against
Islamic State, rather than on a political spat.
“Robust debate is
at the heart of our democracy but so is also mutual respect,”
Stoltenberg said at a news conference Monday. “Therefore, I will
encourage all allies to show mutual respect, to be calm and have a
measured approach … to defuse tensions and de-escalate the
situation.”
“It’s important
that we now focus on everything that unites us,” Stoltenberg added.
“NATO presence in Turkey is good for Turkey but it is also good for
Europe and the rest of the alliance.”
But far from
stepping back, the Turkish government announced late Monday that it
would retaliate against the Netherlands with diplomatic sanctions:
barring the return of the Dutch ambassador who is currently out of
Turkey; closing Turkish airspace to official Dutch flights;
suspending inter-governmental meetings, and dissolving a friendship
group between the Turkish National Assembly and the Dutch Parliament.
A senior government spokesman, Numan Kurtulmuş, who announced the
sanctions, repeated the assertion of “neo-Nazi influence” in the
Dutch government and said Ankara was acting to protect its “rights
and dignity.”
“Turkey will act
responsibly and decisively,” Kurtulmuş said.
In a sign of just
how tense the crisis had become, there was talk in the hallways of
NATO headquarters Monday about the Suez Canal crisis in 1956, when
Britain and France bombed Egyptian positions without alerting other
allies including the U.S. The point was that things could be worse,
but it offered little reassurance, given that relations with Turkey
have been in a sharp downward spiral since the failed coup against
Erdoğan’s government last summer.
The Turkish
president responded with a fierce crackdown that included jailing
hundreds of military officers, journalists and civil servants,
including members of the judiciary. Those steps, which Ankara viewed
as crucial to its security and Europe viewed as overly authoritarian,
had already led members of the European Parliament to call for an end
to accession talks with Turkey, which is formally still a candidate
for EU membership.
The current feud
stems from efforts by Erdoğan’s government to build support among
Turks living abroad for the package of constitutional changes with
campaign-style events. Austria, Germany and the Netherlands each took
steps to prevent such campaigning, raising questions about the
potential suppression of free speech that were quickly answered with
concerns about public safety and the technical requirements of
obtaining permits for rallies and demonstrations.
At the European
Commission on Monday, officials sided firmly with the Netherlands,
Germany and other members of the bloc.
“The European
Union calls on Turkey to refrain from excessive statements and
actions that risk further exacerbating the situation,” the
Commission’s chief spokesman, Margaritis Schinas, said at a news
briefing.
Schinas noted that
Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and the EU’s foreign
policy chief, Federica Mogherini, had worked through the weekend
monitoring the tensions with Turkey.
“Matters of
concern can only be resolved through open and direct communication
channels and we, here at the Commission, will continue to provide our
good offices in the interest of EU-Turkey relations,” Schinas said,
but he pointedly noted: “Decisions with regard to the holding of
meetings and rallies in our member states are a matter for the member
states concerned in accordance with the applicable provisions of
international and national law.”
Rutte’s tough
response, blocking the Turkish foreign minister’s plane from
landing Saturday and forcibly ejecting another Turkish minister who
drove to Rotterdam from Germany, seem to have bolstered his position.
At a news conference
Monday, Rutte said that he had tried to reduce tensions but that
Turkey was unwilling to go along, and he insisted that his position
had not been altered by the imminent elections.
“We tried to
deescalate the conflict,” Rutte said, adding, “To deescalate, it
takes two to tango.”
The Dutch prime
minister also said that he was pleased by the show of European
solidarity. “I was happy with [German Chancellor Angela] Merkel,
she told us that Germany is shoulder to shoulder with us,” he said,
“I think the French ministers were helpful too. And the European
Commission, all supporting our position, that is very positive.”
With each side
seeming to benefit politically from the dispute, the chances of
tempers cooling anytime soon appeared slim.
In a joint
statement, Mogherini and Commissioner Johannes Hahn, who is
responsible for neighborhood policy and EU enlargement issues, warned
sharply about Erdoğan’s proposed constitutional changes, citing
the Vienna Commission’s warning of a rollback of democratic
freedoms in favor of a heavy-handed presidency.
“The Venice
Commission’s comments on the proposed constitutional amendments
raise serious concerns at the excessive concentration of powers in
one office, with serious effect on the necessary checks and balances
and on the independence of the judiciary,” Mogherini and Hahn said.
“It is also of concern that this process of constitutional change
is taking place under the state of emergency.”
They also warned
that approval of the constitutional changes could further undermine
Turkey’s prospects of ever joining the EU. “The proposed
amendments, if approved at the referendum of 16 April, and especially
their practical implementation, will be assessed in light of Turkey’s
obligations as an EU candidate country and as a member of the Council
of Europe,” they said.
In a statement
Sunday, the Dutch government said it had canceled a scheduled rally
in Rotterdam, and subsequently blocked the Turkish foreign minister’s
plane from landing because of public safety concerns, calling
Turkey’s rhetoric “unacceptable.”
The Dutch foreign
ministry also issued a travel warning to its citizens noting the
“diplomatic tensions between Turkey and the Netherlands” and
adding to pre-existing travel warnings about the danger of areas of
Turkey near the Syrian border. “Be alert across Turkey, avoiding
gatherings and crowded places,” the new warning stated. “Follow
the news of the embassy and the consulate general.”
Cynthia Kroet
contributed to this article.
This article has
been updated with the most recent developments from Turkey.
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