Berlin and Ankara exchange barbs over Ozil-Gundogan-Erdogan meeting

A senior Turkish official has slammed the German soccer federation, media and various other politicians after they criticised two German gamers of Turkish descent who met Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as he seeks re-election.

Erdogan met Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil and Manchester City’s Ilkay Gundogan during an official focus on with to the United Kingdom. Every also play for the German nationwide group. Turkey’s striker Cenk Tosun used to be also at the gathering.

Photos taken in London demonstrate the gamers handing jerseys to the Turkish president and had been printed on social media on Monday by Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Building Celebration (AK Celebration).

One image displays the wording on Gundogan’s jersey, which reads: « With appreciate for my president ».

Reinhard Grindel, president of the German soccer federation DFB, accused the gamers in a series of tweets of being manipulated by Erdogan’s election marketing campaign.

« DFB, of course, respects the special bid of our gamers with a migration background. However soccer and the DFB stand for values that are no longer sufficiently respected by Mr Erdogan, » Grindel acknowledged.

« That’s why it is a long way not any longer correct for our nationwide gamers to be abused by his marketing campaign manoeuvres. Our two gamers completely did no longer support the mixing work of DFB with this action. »

‘Erdoganphobia’

Erdogan and his social gathering are campaigning for the presidential and parliamentary elections on June 24.

Yasin Aktay, a senior Erdogan adviser, called the reaction to the photos a brand unique instance of « Erdoganphobia » that is thriving in Germany – moreover « Islamophobia ».

« He is the publicly elected president of Turkey. He represents your entire of the Turkish public in that space. This reaction displays that German authorities hold an irrational fanaticism against Erdogan, » Aktay told Al Jazeera.

Mesut Ozil, Ilkay Gundogan and Cenk Tosun welcomed Turkey president Recep Tayyip Erdogan to London — and gave him signed shirts from their respective golf equipment as a reward. https://t.co/LrhdCoLgS0

— Chris Wheatley (@ChrisWheatley_) Might perhaps perhaps perhaps well 14, 2018

He criticised Germany by making an obvious reference to dissident Turkish journalist Can Dundar’s meeting with German President Joachim Gauck late last year.

« German authorities casually meet and pose with a one that is accused of espionage in Turkey as the German president did, » he acknowledged.

« Conversely, German officials and politicians condemn Turkish German soccer gamers for posing in pictures with their president as a outcomes of nothing but natural emotions. »

Aktay also stressed out that Erdogan, who is a dilapidated soccer participant, met the gamers in a non-public ability and the meeting had nothing to contrivance with the June elections.

Many lines

Dundar, who for the time being resides in Germany, used to be sentenced in Turkey for revealing notify secrets and ways after his newspaper, Cumhuriyet, printed a narrative about Turkish intelligence autos allegedly carrying weapons to rebels in Syria in 2015.

Dundar is surely one of many lines within the kinfolk between Berlin and Ankara.

Turkish and German officials had been in a confrontation in most up-to-date years. Ankara accuses Berlin of supporting « terrorism », whereas Germany has denounced the deterioration of democratic and human rights in Turkey.

The Turkish govt says Germany helps the Kurdistan Workers’ Celebration (PKK), which has been waging battle against the Turkish notify because the Eighties.

‘Deplorable notorious’

Sevim Dagdelen, deputy chairperson of the Left Celebration parliamentary community in Germany, acknowledged all nationwide group gamers must be unbiased devices and would perhaps stand for dazzling play, no longer correct on the pitch.

« Them courting Erdogan as their president whereas Turkey persecutes democrats and journalists is a corrupt notorious, » acknowledged Dagdelen.

Cem Ozdemir, Inexperienced Celebration co-chief, tweeted: « It is distasteful and embarrassing for soccer millionaires to be homage for [Erdogan’s] election marketing campaign. »

In an editorial, the nationwide Bild newspaper called the gamers « political idiots, but soccer geniuses ».

« In case you’ve gotten a real space, you accomplish no longer snigger into the camera with Erdogan, » it acknowledged, even supposing it refuted calls to kick the gamers off the nationwide group.

Germany and other Western European governments hold time and all all over again condemned the Turkish govt’s detentions and purges of tens of thousands of of us after a failed coup strive in July 2016. 

Erdogan’s govt says the crackdown follows the guideline of law and targets to take hold of away coup supporters from notify institutions and other substances of society.

@IlkayGuendogan @MesutOzil1088 I hope you notify the German FA where to stick their shirt and dash play on your country 🇹🇷 it appears they’ll hold phrases with you because ERDOGAN would not fit their values but supporting PKK in germany does…. @DFB_Team_EN

— Emiliano François 🐐 #MerciArsène (@Aubamepeng14) Might perhaps perhaps perhaps well 14, 2018

For someone as exceptionally attentive to and cautious along with his have image as Ozil I cannot realize why he would perhaps well well be photographed with Erdogan. For certain he took phase in a non-public ability but he’s no longer painting Arsenal in a correct gentle the least bit.

— James Benge (@jamesbenge) Might perhaps perhaps perhaps well 14, 2018