As the Sept. 24 federal elections in Germany approach, it seems that the candidates will increasingly slam not only Turkey, but the entire Middle East and the Islamic world. I wonder whether this is imbued by the fact that Kaiser Wilhelm and Hitler respectively riveted their eyes on the Middle East as a potential "Lebensraum" (living space).
Dominating the Balkans and Greece with its economic force, does Germany regard Turkey as the sole impediment to its Lebensraum ambitions and expansionism? Meanwhile, it must be noted that German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel has disgraced himself due to his obsession with Turkey and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. He alleged that his wife Anke Gabriel, a dentist, was threatened following a strong interaction he had with Erdoğan. Gabriel said that Erdoğan "had apparently led some to feel motivated to try to threaten and harass my wife. Of course, this is a terrible outcome."
However, it turned out the one threatening Gabriel's wife was a German citizen tired of the country's politics. It was revealed that the threatening person, whose name was not released, expressed his unrest and displeasure with the policies of the Social Democratic Party (SPD).
Not having issued an apology for his baseless claims, Gabriel persisted in his rhetoric against Erdoğan in an interview with the Bild newspaper on the deterioration of Turkish-German relations. Stating that Germany's problem is with Erdoğan, Gabriel added that Turkey's EU membership would be impossible under the current circumstances. However, we are so familiar with such news from Germany that even itemizing the news is not a big deal any longer.
According to a report issued by the Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) Directorate of Publicity and Media, relations first turned sour when former German President Joachim Gauck invited journalist Can Dündar to the Bellevue Palace after a warrant was issued for Dündar as part of the controversial National Intelligence Organization (MİT) trucks case.
Here are some other recent instances portraying Germany's hostility to Turkey: German parliament recognized the so-called Armenian genocide last year. Also last year, following the atrocious July 15 coup attempt, a German court decision prevented Erdoğan from addressing a rally in Cologne via videoconference while the country protected the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) operatives who fled to Germany after the failed coup attempt.
Germany also did not allow the rallies and meetings of Turkish ministers scheduled in Germany throughout the April 16 referendum campaign, although opposition campaign events run by the outlawed PKK were permitted. In the context of the referendum, Germany ran an official opposition campaign through state television by releasing content in Turkish.