Turkey is facing a heavy backlash in the West from its invasion of Syria, and nowhere is that better represented than in a YouGov/DPA survey, which showed 58% of Germans believe Turkey ought to be expelled outright from NATO for the invasion.
Which isn’t to say this is liable to happen, as NATO has no mechanism for even kicking member nations out. This makes doing so all but impossible, because NATO would need to invent a way to kick Turkey out, get Turkey to agree to it as a NATO member, and then use it against them.
The poll also showed even bigger German majorities favoring other measures, with 61% supporting sanctions against Turkey and 69% favoring a complete arms export ban. It’s not clear the Merkel government is contemplating either.
Germany has substantial tension with Turkey on a number of issues, as Erdogan has tried to use Germany’s legal system to silence critics, and has been deeply critical of Germany for not supporting him on foreign policy.
*No mechanism
If the USA can invade countries for bs reasons 7000 miles from their border, should not Turkey be able to do so when it is immediately on their border?
Not a big fan of Erdogan, but Turkey is living with the consequences (ie 10ks of refugees) of the West’s (mainly USA’s) failed policies in Syria
Turkey was right there with US on Syria policy….until we started arming the wrong “terrorists.”
Germany is a mewling, occupied vassal-state. Turkey is a sovereign, independent nation.
Why, because Turkey is ruled by a “strong,” authoritarian leader, and imprisons journalists? We really need our own strong leader who ignores Congress when it doesn’t bend his way, who can earmark money for pet projects and decide what the nation should do based on what side of the bed he got up on that morning.
No, because Turkey actually has something of an independent foreign policy while Germany does not. Witness what happened with the Iran sanctions.
Yo, Germans, and what about KSA bombing the crap out of Yemen. And what about India suppressing Kashmir with 700,000 troops, and…..and….
How about “kicking out” NATO from Europe? The reason for NATO’s existence, i.e. the Warsaw Pact, is long gone.
No one gives a damn what most Germans think. The German gov’t will do whatever Washington tells them to do.
No one gives a damn what most Americans think, either. Unless they can write five-figure checks to their local Congresscritter, that is.
Germany and the Turkey have a long history together. Atat Turk even changed the Turkish alphabet that was based on Arabic characters to Latin based. The Turks were part of the axis power in WW I and helped to reconstruct Germany in WW II. And up until the wall fell, were part of the citizenry.
It is too late for the Germans to complain about Turkey in NATO.
I’m waiting to see reliable German polling about deporting migrants.
Turkey actually has a serious army and occupies a very strategic location. We need them in the alliance (if we need the alliance at all) far more than we need Germany.
As if German public actually understands the issues. And when Turkey came into Syria from Jarabulus to Al-Bab chasing ISIS and staying there until today — no problem. When Turkey liberated Afrin from Afrin — no problem. Turkey is still there. But — when Trump pulled out of North Syria — sky is falling.
Most Western public is uninformed. It matters little if a country is in NATO or not. Matters only if everyone’s security interests are taken seriously. And if a country feels that in order to get its vital interests protected — it will be threatened by economic devastation? What to do? Search for friends elsewhere — and let NATO worry about membership cards.