European Union says Turkey ‘completely detached from reality’

In the Netherlands, opinion polls indicated a three percentage point lead for Rutte’s party over Wilders’, although these did not fully take into account a rupture of diplomatic relations with Ankara after the Dutch banned Turkish ministers from addressing rallies of overseas Turks.

Ahead of the referendum, the governing party also wants to woo expatriate Turks who reside in Europe; numerous roughly 3 million overseas voters are concentrated in Germany and the Netherlands.

Tusk’s statement follows recent remarks by Turkish officials, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who compared the Dutch to Nazis after Turkish politicians were barred from giving speeches in the Netherlands.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu addressed a public meeting in eastern France on Sunday a day after the Netherlands barred his plane from landing in a row over Ankara’s political campaigning among Turkish emigres.

Having the largest number of Turkish Diaspora in Europe, Germany was naturally the first country that Turkey made a decision to start with. Diplomatic flights would also be suspended.

The deputy premier added that the Dutch ambassador Kees Cornelis van Rij, who is now on leave, is barred from returning to Turkey.

The United States urged both countries to resolve their row.

Simmering tensions between the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies boiled over when bitter campaigns were added to the mix last weekend.

He said Turkey should look at its policy on preventing migrant flows across land borders, although it would keep halting the illegal and risky sea crossings as a matter of human responsibility, state media said.

Even though Turkey is not a member of the European Union, it has close trade and strategic ties with its western neighbours.

European Union leaders called the allegations offensive and “detached from reality”.

The crisis has come about as Erdogan – who survived an attempted military coup in July – seeks to tip the balance in a tight referendum campaign and to strike a chord with nationalist voters. “Why are you not doing anything?”

The crisis appears set to deal yet further damage to Turkey’s tense relationship with the European Union, with fellow EU countries largely backing the Dutch stance and condemning Turkey’s harsh rhetoric.

Turkey also threatened to end the refugee resettlement deal.

After his foreign minister was refused entry in the Netherlands and his family affairs minister was effectively expelled from there by being escorted to the German border, Erdogan accused the Dutch of being “Nazi remnants”, not long after using similarly offensive language in the German context following curbs on a campaign rally by Angela Merkel’s government.

Germany is home to 1.4 million people eligible to vote in Turkey – the fourth-largest electoral base after Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir.

On Wednesday, hackers hijacked the Twitter accounts of major European news organizations and European Parliament legislators, posting swastikas and messages in support of Erdogan. Wilders was never expected to win Wednesday’s Dutch general elections and will likely not be part of any coalition government, but his populist movement will inflict lasting damage on the Netherlands’ political future.

“On behalf of my country and all women, I strongly condemn this biased, racist and xenophobic treatment”, she said, adding that the world should not “remain silent” to the Dutch government’s actions.

Altmaier added that Germany “will take a close look at what is responsible and what is not”.

Turkey has already responded furiously to fellow North Atlantic Treaty Organisation ally Germany’s refusal to give permission for ministers to hold rallies there, with Erdogan comparing such action to “Nazi practices”.

Erdogan’s spokesman said the Netherlands had bowed to anti-Islam sentiment.

“Forty-four percent of the whole export of Turkey is linked to the European Union and only 2 percent is linked to Russian Federation”, he told reporters.