German Chancellor Olaf Scholz met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan in Istanbul, where the topics of asylum seekers and arms exports took center stage.<\/p>\n
Speaking after the meeting, Scholz noted that it was a ‘matter of course’ for NATO partner T\u00fcrkiye to purchase German weapons, even expressing openness to the supply of Eurofighter jets.<\/p>\n
Britain leads Eurofighter negotiations<\/strong><\/p>\n Scholz clarified that negotiations regarding the supply of Eurofighter jets to T\u00fcrkiye are being led by the UK, and that discussions are still in the early stages.<\/p>\n “There are some projects that have just started. This is a project the British government is leading, and negotiations are now beginning,” Scholz said at a press conference with Erdo\u011fan, responding to a question on the topic.<\/p>\n Ankara had announced last year its interest in purchasing Eurofighter jets, but progress has been slow, largely due to Berlin’s concerns over T\u00fcrkiye’s stance on the Gaza conflict.<\/p>\n Germany increases arms deliveries to T\u00fcrkiye<\/strong><\/p>\n According to Der Spiegel<\/em>, Berlin recently approved significant arms deliveries to T\u00fcrkiye, including anti-aircraft missiles valued at several hundred million euros.<\/p>\n Ahead of Scholz\u2019s second visit to T\u00fcrkiye in his three years in office, reports surfaced that the German government had once again approved large-scale arms exports to T\u00fcrkiye. Tagesspiegel<\/em> reported that, by October 13 of this year, 69 export licenses worth \u20ac103 million had been issued. Among these were weapons valued at \u20ac840,000.<\/p>\n For the first time since 2011, the approved export value for T\u00fcrkiye has returned to the hundreds of millions. In the last major approval, 28 torpedoes and 101 guided missiles were greenlit for export.<\/p>\n Regarding the Eurofighter jets, since they are to be co-produced with Germany, the German government must also approve their sale.<\/p>\n Scholz: Relations have ‘noticeably improved’<\/strong><\/p>\n The Eurofighter Typhoon jets are produced by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Systems, and Leonardo, with participation from Germany, the UK, Italy, and Spain. Any of the four nations can veto the sale, though London is currently leading the negotiations.<\/p>\n Erdo\u011fan expressed satisfaction with the renewed defense cooperation, stating that previous obstacles to defense procurement “should now be left behind.”<\/p>\n The meeting between Scholz and Erdo\u011fan, attended by top officials and ministers from both countries, was described by Scholz as a ‘visible sign’ of the improved quality of relations between Germany and T\u00fcrkiye.<\/p>\n Migration: Low profile on concrete outcomes<\/strong><\/p>\n When questioned about specific results on migration, both leaders kept a low profile, according to Tagesspiegel<\/em>.<\/p>\n The German government is seeking to deport criminals not only to Afghanistan but also to Syria, and is exploring potential cooperation partners. Scholz reiterated his intention to deport “criminals” to Syria but avoided confirming whether T\u00fcrkiye would assist in this effort.<\/p>\n As of September, 15,789 Turkish citizens were slated for deportation from Germany, an increase of 1,200 compared to five months earlier. During the first half of the year, 441 deportations were carried out.<\/p>\n Interior Minister Nancy Faeser recently stated that T\u00fcrkiye had agreed to accelerate the repatriation of Turkish citizens, although no concrete details have been announced.<\/p>\n Erdo\u011fan on migration and economic ties<\/strong><\/p>\n Erdo\u011fan noted that trade between T\u00fcrkiye and Germany had reached $50 billion, with hopes of increasing this figure to $60 billion.<\/p>\n On the topic of migration, Erdo\u011fan highlighted that T\u00fcrkiye currently hosts around 3.5 million Syrian refugees and that the country will continue to keep its doors open to them.<\/p>\n “We worked on this issue during [former Chancellor] Merkel’s time in office. Our door has always been open, and it remains so. When people from the Middle East or Lebanon came, we welcomed them. There are also Turkmen in Lebanon. Our door is open,” Erdo\u011fan said.<\/p>\n Scholz thanked Erdo\u011fan for T\u00fcrkiye\u2019s efforts in managing migration and assured that Germany would continue supporting T\u00fcrkiye in handling the influx of Syrian refugees.<\/p>\n Disagreements on Gaza<\/strong><\/p>\n The two leaders maintained differing views on the situation in Gaza. Erdo\u011fan accused Israel of committing genocide, a claim Scholz firmly rejected.<\/p>\n “Germany does not believe that the accusation of genocide is justified,” Scholz stated, while emphasizing that Israel has the right to self-defense, provided it adheres to international law.<\/p>\n Scholz acknowledged their disagreement on the issue, remarking: “Even if we do not agree on everything, an intensive dialogue on international conflicts is important\u2014it is the only way to find solutions.”<\/p>\n Calls for cooperation on Ukraine<\/strong><\/p>\n Both leaders expressed a desire to collaborate on the Ukraine conflict, though their statements remained vague.<\/p>\n “We are both on the side of Ukraine,” Scholz said, adding that he would like to explore how T\u00fcrkiye and Germany could cooperate on the matter.<\/p>\n In recent weeks, Scholz has intensified efforts to advocate for a new peace conference on Ukraine that would include Russia.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" German Chancellor Olaf Scholz met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan in Istanbul, where the topics of asylum seekers and arms exports took center stage. Speaking after the meeting, Scholz noted that it was a ‘matter of course’ for NATO partner T\u00fcrkiye to purchase German weapons, even expressing openness to the supply of Eurofighter jets. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5755,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[175],"tags":[3154,3153,1334,543,2316,760,1448,409,822],"class_list":["post-5754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diplomacy","tag-arms-deal","tag-dialogue","tag-gaza","tag-germany","tag-migration","tag-olaf-scholz","tag-recep-tayyip-erdogan","tag-turkiye","tag-ukraine"],"yoast_head":"\n