Turkey criticises EU for backing Netherlands in diplomatic dispute

Turkey said it did not want to see the Dutch ambassador return to his post in Ankara for some time.

Rutte stood by his government’s decision to expel Kaya, saying she had been an “undesirable” visitor.

Erdogan had earlier this month already compared German policies to “Nazi practices”, after German municipalities canceled several campaign events by Turkish officials last weekend. It happened in the heart of Europe, the so-called cradle of democracy, liberty and equality. The referendum comes as Erdogan has taken an increasingly hard line toward the West, despite Turkey’s status as a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation member.

Dutch citizens of Turkish descent are at the centre of the crisis.

The European Union yesterday warned President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to avoid inflammatory rhetoric as a diplomatic crisis between Turkey and the Netherlands deepened over the blocking of Turkish ministers from holding rallies to win support for plans to expand his powers.

The Netherlands and Germany have barred the ministers, citing public safety.

“There will be a stronger reprisal against the unacceptable treatment toward Turkey and ministers who have diplomatic immunity”, Yildirim said. Sweden and Austria followed suit.

“This is a very serious and deep crisis in the relations between the two countries”, Kurtulmus said. European diplomacy, which praises itself as the cradle of democratic values and civilization, should not fall apart. “You give freedom to terrorists, members of the PKK, [far left group] DHKP/C and the [Fetullah Terror Organization] FETO”.

Turkey’s EU Affairs Minister Omer Celik also said Ankara “should re-evaluate” a key part of a 2016 deal to stem the flow of migrants to the EU. “If you are sacrificing Turkish-Dutch relations for the sake of the elections on Wednesday, you will pay a price”. Turkish officials wanted to hold rallies with people of Turkish origin on the territory of Europe, which is a direct interference with the European Union internal affairs. Eyes are fixed on the fierce campaign.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte called Erdogan’s latest attack a “disgusting falsification of history”, in response to RTL Nieuws.

Wilders wants the Netherlands out of the EU, Islam out of the country, and an end to immigration from Muslim countries. The vote-getting ability of the divisive populist candidate Geert Wilders is seen as a potential bellwether for elections elsewhere in Europe this year, most notably in France and Germany.

But on Tuesday he touched an arguably even rawer nerve, recalling Srebrenica, where Dutch UN peacekeepers failed to prevent an episode that remains a national trauma to this day.

Chancellery sources reported to the newspaper on the filing of complaints to the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Council of Europe against actions by the other government on March 11. The move angered people in Turkey, some of whom took to the streets to protest, placing a black wreath in front of the Dutch Consulate.

Germany’s Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere on Tuesday said Ankara was playing the role of the victim with its broadsides against North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies, as Erdoğan seeks to “build solidarity” ahead of the referendum.