Erdogan's Nazi claim 'unacceptable': German chancellery

BERLIN: Germany's chancellery on Monday hit out against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for likening a German ban on rallies by his ministers to "Nazi practices", calling the comparison "absolutely unacceptable", reports AFP. "The government will make this very clear" to Turkey, Peter Altmaier, chief of staff at the chancellery, told public broadcaster ARD.
"There is absolutely no reason to allow ourselves to be reproached over this," he added.
Several local authorities in Germany last week banned rallies by Turkish ministers seeking to campaign for support ahead of an April referendum on boosting Erdogan's powers.
The authorities had cited capacity problems in hosting the rallies, which they said would likely attract large crowds.
Chancellor Angela Merkel has said her government did not have a hand in the decisions, which fell under the jurisdiction of local authorities.
But Ankara responded to the cancellations with fury.
In a bid to defuse the row, Merkel rang Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Saturday.
But a day later, Erdogan lashed out against Berlin, telling a rally in Istanbul: "Germany, you are not even close to democracy.

 

Erdogans Nazi claim unacceptable: German chancellery

BERLIN: Germanys chancellery on Monday hit out against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for likening a German ban on rallies by his ministers to Nazi practices, calling the comparison absolutely unacceptable, reports AFP. The government will make this very clear to Turkey, Peter Altmaier, chief of staff at the chancellery, told public broadcaster ARD. There is absolutely no reason to allow ourselves to be reproached over this, he added. Several local authorities in Germany last week banned rallies by Turkish ministers seeking to campaign for support ahead of an April referendum on boosting Erdogans powers. The authorities had cited capacity problems in hosting the rallies, which they said would likely attract large crowds. Chancellor Angela Merkel has said her government did not have a hand in the decisions, which fell under the jurisdiction of local authorities. But Ankara responded to the cancellations with fury. In a bid to defuse the row, Merkel rang Turkeys Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Saturday. But a day later, Erdogan lashed out against Berlin, telling a rally in Istanbul: Germany, you are not even close to democracy.