Merkel threatens to move German soldiers from Turkey
Ankara has refused a recent request by members of the German parliament's defense committee to visit some 270 of the country's soldiers at a Turkish air base in Incirlik who are serving a NATO mission targeting ISIS.
BERLIN - Berlin may move its soldiers to another country if Ankara does not grant permission to members of the German parliament's defense committee to visit staff currently serving in a NATO mission on a Turkish air base, Chancellor Angela Merkel said.
Speaking at a Monday news conference, Merkel said it was essential for lawmakers to be able to visit the 270 soldiers serving at Incirlik air base in Turkey, where they are involved in a NATO mission targeting the Islamic State militant group in Syria.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Schaefer told reporters that Turkey indicated the refusal to grant the lawmakers access was tied to Germany's decision to grant asylum to Turkish soldiers accused by Ankara of participating in last year's failed coup.
"This is unfortunate, and we have made this clear through various channels," Merkel said.
Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel plans to raise the issue at a meeting with allies in Washington this week, Schaefer said.
Defense Ministry spokesman Jens Flosdorff said the military is examining moving Germany's Tornado reconnaissance jets and a refueling plane from Incirlik to another country.
Merkel reinforced that point, noting that "We will continue to talk with Turkey, but in parallel we will have to explore other ways of fulfilling our mandate. That means looking at alternatives to Incirlik, and one alternative among others is Jordan."
The Incirlik refusal, which follows a similar standoff last year, is the latest in a long line of irritants in Turkish-German relations.
Among other recent events, Berlin is pushing - so far in vain - for consular access to a German journalist, Mesale Tolu, who was detained in Turkey. It also has said that it wouldn't allow voting in Germany on a possible Turkish referendum on reintroducing the death penalty.
Last summer, Turkey refused to allow German lawmakers to visit personnel stationed at Incirlik following a German parliament vote to label as genocide the killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks a century ago. Turkey relented after the German government stressed that the resolution wasn't legally binding.
German military missions abroad need parliamentary approval, typically on an annual basis.
"The Bundeswehr is a parliamentary army, and so it is absolutely necessary that there be possibilities for our lawmakers to visit their soldiers," Merkel said.
The parliamentary leader of the Social Democrats, Merkel's junior governing partners, said the latest refusal was "a drastic development."
"Under these circumstances, the Bundeswehr cannot stay at Incirlik," Thomas Oppermann said.
