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Ankara imposes political sanctionss against the Netherlands

14 March 2017 [12:37] - TODAY.AZ

By Azernews


By Kamila Aliyeva

Turkey has announced a number of political sanctions against the Netherlands over its refusal to allow two Turkish ministers to campaign there, including halting high-level political discussions between the two countries and closing Turkish air space to Dutch diplomats.

Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus, talking to a briefing on March 13, said the sanctions would apply until the Netherlands takes steps "to redress" the actions that Ankara sees as a grave insult.

"There is a crisis and a very deep one. We didn't create this crisis or bring it to this stage," Kurtulmus said, adding that those who did have to take steps to redress the situation.

Other sanctions bar the Dutch ambassador entry back into Turkey and advise parliament to withdraw from a Dutch-Turkish friendship group.

The announcement came hours after Turkey's Foreign Ministry sent protest notes to the Dutch side over the treatment of a Turkish minister who was prevented from entering a consulate in the Netherlands and escorted out of the country after trying to attend a political rally.

The ministry also objected to what it called a "disproportionate" use of force against demonstrators at a protest afterward. Separately, Turkey's foreign minister was denied permission to land to address the same rally in Rotterdam.

The Dutch government did not allow Turkish officials to campaign there to drum up support among Turks who are eligible to vote in an April 16 referendum. About 400,000 people with ties to Turkey live in the Netherlands, though it's not clear how many are eligible to vote.

The Netherlands has urged its citizens living in Turkey to avoid public places and be careful.

There is a diplomatic crisis between Turkey and the Netherlands since March 11, reads a message from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands.

URL: http://www.today.az/news/regions/159426.html

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