German FM - process of finding alternative location for Incirlik will start this or next week

Record ID: 878243

  • Title: German FM - process of finding alternative location for Incirlik will start this or next week
  • Date: 5th June 2017
  • Summary: ANKARA, TURKEY (JUNE 5, 2017) (REUTERS) GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTER SIGMAR GABRIEL TALKING TO JOURNALIST (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTER, SIGMAR GABRIEL, SAYING: "Therefore I think that we will set in motion the process of finding another location this or next week. That will take some time. But I do not think that we can solve this issue with Turkey right now. We don't talk about a singular permit to visit or such, but we need a principal decision after which, for instance, the members of the German defence committee can visit whenever they see fit. The Turkish government could not guarantee for domestic reasons. We have to respect that at the end of the day. But, in reverse, so does the Turkish government." JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTER, SIGMAR GABRIEL, SAYING: "Turkey is unhappy about how Germany deals with Turkish citizens who have applied for asylum in Germany. We explained to them that independent authorities deal with that in our country, and courts at the very end. But we have very different understanding of constitutional processes." GABRIEL TALKING TO JOURNALIST
  • Embargoed: 19th June 2017 14:56
  • Keywords: Incirlik Sigmar Gabriel Turkey
  • Location: ANKARA, TURKEY
  • City: ANKARA, TURKEY
  • Country: Turkey
  • Topics: NATO,Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA0016K04NK7
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:Germany will start the process of finding an alternative location for its forces in Incirlik air force base in southern Turkey as early as this or next week, Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Monday (June 5).
    He said that Turkey cannot guarantee German lawmakers a chance to visit German troops whenever they see fit for domestic reasons. "We have to respect that at the end of the day. But, in reverse, so does the Turkish government," Gabriel said at the German embassy in Ankara, after meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, aimed to address the stand-off over Incirlik and other diplomatic tensions between the two NATO allies.
    Turkey has prevented German lawmakers from visiting the roughly 250 troops stationed at Incirlik as part of the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State, saying that Berlin needs to improve its attitude first.
    Ties between Turkey and Germany deteriorated sharply in the run-up to Turkey's April 16 referendum that handed President Tayyip Erdogan stronger presidential powers.
    Turkey was infuriated when Germany, citing security concerns, banned some Turkish politicians from addressing rallies of expatriate Turks before the referendum. Ankara responded by accusing Berlin of "Nazi-like" tactics.
    It has also called on Berlin to extradite people who are seeking asylum in Germany and have suspected links to last July's attempted coup in Turkey. But Gabriel rejected that, saying that independent authorities in Germany were to decide over asylum issues, not the government.
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