A diplomatic crisis between Turkey and the Netherlands deepened Monday as both sides traded bitter accusations after Turkish ministers were blocked from holding rallies to win support for plans to expand the powers of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Erdogan at the weekend twice accused the Netherlands of acting like the Nazis, comments that sparked outrage in a country bombed and occupied by German forces in World War II.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who faces a major challenge from the far-right in a key general election Wednesday, said Erdogan's comments were unacceptable and it was Ankara that should apologise.
The Dutch authorities had at the weekend prevented the plane of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu from landing and blocked Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya from holding a rally in Rotterdam.
The Turkish foreign ministry on Monday summoned the Dutch envoy to Ankara for the third day in a row, handing two separate protest notes over The Hague's behaviour.
The Netherlands on Monday also issued a new travel warning to Dutch citizens in Turkey, urging them to stay "alert across the whole of Turkey".
Dutch PM @markrutte :This country was bombed by Nazis, it's totally unacceptable for them (Turkey) to talk like this pic.twitter.com/wIqQyz9HFo
— Mutlu Civiroglu (@mutludc) March 13, 2017
'Totally unacceptable'
Erdogan, who has indicated he may attempt to address rallies in EU states in a move that could inflame the situation further, said Sunday that the West was showing its "true face" in the standoff. He has repeatedly accused the Netherlands of acting like "fascists" and "Nazis", saying on Sunday: "I had thought that the era of Nazism was over but I was wrong." Rutte, under pressure to take a hard line against Erdogan as he faces the far-right populist Geert Wilders in Wednesday's poll, said there were no apologies to be made to Turkey. "They (Turkey) should make excuses for what they've done yesterday," he said. He expressed outrage at Erdogan's Nazi jibe, noting: "This country was bombed during the World War II by the Nazis. It's totally unacceptable to talk in this way."'Excessive statements'
The EU urged Turkey to avoid "excessive statements" and actions that could increase tensions, in a row with the Netherlands and Germany over the blocking of rallies by Turkish ministers. "The EU calls on Turkey to refrain from excessive statements and actions that risk further exacerbating the situation," EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn said in a statement. Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg also urges Turkey and the European allies to 'de-escalate' tensions.#Rotterdam: #Dutch special (anti-terror) forces trying to arrest and deport #Turkey's Family Minister in #Rotterdam. pic.twitter.com/z5Eitf10gO— WorldOnAlert (@worldonalert) March 11, 2017
'Lifeline for Erdogan'
Bringing out the millions-strong expatriate vote could be key in a referendum that is expected to be close and potentially a turning point in Turkey's modern history.
Analysts have said Erdogan is using the crisis to show that his strong leadership is needed against a Europe which he presents as being innately hostile to Turkey.
"Erdogan is looking for 'imagined' foreign enemies to boost his nationalist base in the run up to the April 16 referendum," Soner Cagaptay, director of the Turkish Research Programme at The Washington Institute, said.
"By blocking (the rallies), they may have given Erdogan a life line to eke out a victory in the referendum," he added.
