EU, NATO call on Turkey to deescalate tensions with Netherlands

The European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) have strongly called on Turkey to move toward defusing the deepening row between Ankara and the Netherlands which erupted after a ban on Turkish ministers speaking at political events in Rotterdam, urging both sides to show mutual respect.

According to Press TV, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn in a joint statement on Monday urged Ankara to “to refrain from excessive statements and actions that risk further exacerbating the situation.”

The EU statement came two days after Dutch authorities banned Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and the country’s Family and Social Policy Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya from campaigning for Turkey’s April constitutional referendum which seeks to extend President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's powers.

The ban triggered an unprecedented row between Ankara and Amsterdam, with Erdogan calling the Dutch authorities “fascists” and “remnants of Nazis” on Sunday, reiterating his previous provocative assertions, which sparked outrage in a country that had gone through Nazi Germany’s bombardment and occupation in World War II.

Shortly after Erdogan’s comments, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte noted that Ankara should apologize for comparing the Dutch to Nazis.

On Sunday, Turkey, in a seemingly retaliatory move, sealed off the Dutch embassy in Ankara and consulate in Istanbul over “security” reasons, and asked off-duty Dutch ambassador in Ankara, who was on leave, not to return “for a while.”

Several German municipalities had earlier canceled similar rallies by a number of Turkish ministers campaigning for a “yes” vote in the April plebiscite, a move that also angered Ankara.

“Following the tensions of these last days between Turkey and some EU member states, it is essential to avoid further escalation and find ways to calm down the situation,” the EU statement further said.

EU to assess Turkey’s constitutional changes

In a separate statement, the European Commission said on Monday that it would evaluate Turkey’s planned constitutional changes in light of the country's status as an applicant for EU membership, which Ankara has been seeking for a long time.

The vote is aimed at abolishing the office of the prime minister and giving more executive powers to the currently largely ceremonial position of the Turkish president.

NATO urges deescalation

Meanwhile, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg also called on Ankara and Amsterdam to settle their escalating dispute, saying "robust debate is at the heart of our democracies but so is mutual respect."

Stoltenberg further encouraged all the military bloc’s allies to show mutual respect for one another and to “be calm and have a measured approach,” adding that the focus in the meantime should be on all those issues that unite the member states.

Dutch PM criticizes Ankara’s attitude

In a related development on Monday, the Dutch premier said in a news conference in Rotterdam that his country would “never negotiate under threats from the Turkish government” and that the Turks, who live in the Netherlands, “are Dutch citizens, not Turkish citizens.”

As the tensions escalated, the Netherlands issued a new travel warning for Turkey, urging Dutch citizens there to take care.

Rutte also confirmed that the Dutch government had tried to ease the current tensions with Ankara, adding that Erdogan’s remarks would not help deescalate the situation between Ankara and Amsterdam.

His remarks came after the Turkish senior authorities, including President Erdogan, warned that they would impose sanctions on the European country for the ban on Turkish ministers.

SS